SUKKUR: Sindh Inspector General of Police Ghulam Nabi Memon on Saturday said that his department had been suffering heavy losses of men and material in the ongoing fight against dacoit gangs because the latter were equipped with more sophisticated weapons.

However, he added, the Sindh government was procuring matching weaponry for the police and such a consignment from Turkey would be arriving within the next two weeks.

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IGP Memon was speaking to the media in the office of the Kandhkot SSP on Sunday after presiding over a meeting of top-ranking police officers of Larkana and Sukkur police ranges.

Larkana DIG Nasir Aftab Pathan briefed the provincial police chief about the achievements and shortcomings in the months-long operations against dacoit gangs in upper Sindh districts.

Kandhkot-Kashmore SSP Bashir Ahmed Brohi, Larkana SSP Mir Ruhal Khan Khoso, Shikarpur SSP Irfan Samoo, Jacobabad SSP Syed Saleem Ali Shah and other senior police officers gave their inputs about security situation in their respective jurisdictions. Kandhkot-Kashmore Deputy Commissioner Amir Fazal Owaisi and other district administration officials were also present at the meeting.

Observes morale of field force high despite heavy loss of life inflicted by outlaws in initial phases of operation

The meeting discussed in detail the progress of joint police-Rangers operations, being carried out on intelligence-based information, in the gang-infested riverine areas of Sukkur, Kandhkot-Kashmore, Shikarpur, Jacobabad, Larkana and Qambar-Shahdadkot districts.

The IGP told the media that incidents of kidnapping for ransom had been restricted to Kandhkot and Shikarpur areas due to the operations. He claimed that only nine hostages had now remained in gangs’ custody in the riverine area of Kandhkot-Kashmore district and police were carrying out an effective operation there for the safe recovery of the victims.

‘Morale of police high’

While expressing his grief over martyrdom of many police officers and personnel before and during the initial phase of the police-Rangers operations in the strife-torn districts of upper Sindh, IGP Memon appreciated members of the police force for having maintained immense pressure on the dreaded gangs despite being lesser equipped than the outlaws.

He pointed out that the police force inflicted considerably heavy losses to gangsters and other criminals over the last few years. Many criminals had been killed and many more wounded and arrested, he noted.

He observed that morale of the police force in field was high, and reiterated his department’s resolve to eliminate all gangs of criminals in the riverine areas of Sindh very soon.

He said complete peace in the entire region would be restored as the police were about to be equipped with sophisticated weapons being procured by the provincial government.

The police chief also mentioned the recent surge in street crimes in Karachi and said that his department was working hard to maintain law and order in the mega city as well. He said police needed support of the media and general public for success of the operations in Karachi and all other parts of the province.

Honey trap and tribal hostilities

Answering different questions posed by media persons, IGP Memon said the outlaws in upper Sindh had been changing their modus operandi since 2015. In this regard, he pointed out that the gangs involved in kidnapping for ransom had resorted to adopting the tactics of honey trap, targeting youths.

Their victims used to be engaged in friendship through telephonic calls made by gangsters in female voice and then invited to a place close to a riverine area for a date.

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The youths were kidnapped upon reaching the place, he recalled, and said the police also succeeded in curbing such incidents with the help of modern technology. As many as 529 people were saved from being kidnapped through honey trap within just three months, he said.

Tribal feuds, often ending up in armed attacks and clashes leading to bloodshed, are one of the main factors behind lawlessness in upper Sindh districts, according to the IGP.

“Crimes rate has increased owing to tribal feuds in certain districts,” he said, and repeated his appeal to feudal lords of the areas, often accused of patronising criminal gangs, to help government and police by making positive efforts towards getting all types of disputes settled.

Missing girls

About efforts by police to locate and recover missing girls, Priya Kumari and Fazila Sarki, the provincial police chief said that the home department had lately constituted another joint investigation team (JIT) to ascertain whereabouts of Priya Kumari, who had gone missing on Aug 19, 2021 at the age of about seven. The JIT hoped she would be located and recovered soon as it had collected some testimonies and evidence during its probe started on April 2, he said.

Regarding Fazila Sarki’s case, he said it appeared to be an old case and police could not find a clue to her because nobody had come forward with a piece of evidence regarding her disappearance.

In reply to a question about the recent murder of an activist working for promotion of education, Allah Rakhio Nandwani, a primary teacher by profession, IGP Memon said the Kandhkot police were taking effective measures for the arrest of his killers.

Published in Dawn, April 8th, 2024