HYDERABAD, Dec 30: Following the deployment of army and Rangers in interior Sindh, no untoward incident was reported from any district or town, although the civic life remained completely paralysed.

Ghaibana nimaz-i-janaza, fateha khwani and Quran khwani were held across the province for the soul of Benazir Bhutto.

All shops and business houses throughout Sindh remained closed on the fourth day of mourning on Sunday. People had to suffer a lot of inconvenience due to acute shortage of kitchen items especially flour and vegetables.

Scores of FIRs have been registered at different police stations in interior Sindh against arsonists who had damaged public and private properties.

Nine FIRs have been registered at Tandojam police station against 200 people including Awam Dost UC nazim Shafqat Hussain Shah and secretary general Sindh NGOs federation Mohammad Ilyas Khokhar.

In Mirpurkhas, over 12 dozen cases have been registered at Satellite and Town police stations against 1,500 people. In Nawabshah, 2000 accused have been booked in eight different cases.

In Dadu, 60 FIRs have been registered against 3,500 people at different police stations while 1,500 alleged arsonists have been booked in three different FIRs at Gharo police station of Thatta district.

No public transport was available and all highways and roads wore a deserted look. Petrol pumps also remained closed. People were seen travelling on donkey carts. Thousands of train passengers remained stranded for want of transport.

More than 1,200 passengers of Awam Express remained stranded in Sanghar district since Thursday. They were, however, rescued with the help of Rangers and police.

The train had been halted at Nawaz Dahiri Railway Station since Thursday evening departed for Rohri on Saturday after collecting passengers from Nawaz Dahiri and Daur railway stations.

Five FIRs have been lodged at Moro police against unidentified miscreants who had torched 118 vehicles, civil courts and five vehicles of the Motorway police. The situation remains tense.

In Tando Muhammad Khan, no untoward incident was reported on Sunday from any part of the district although all the shops and business houses remained closed to mourn the tragic death of Benazir Bhutto.

The roads wore a deserted look as the public transport has not yet been brought on the roads. The Rangers have set-up headquarter in the district and could be seen patrolling on the roads. Pickets have been set-up outside all the government buildings, including the offices of district nazim, naib nazims, district council hall, taluka and UC nazims and seven banks which were set ablaze by the rioters during the last three days.

The telecommunication system has been seriously affected due to the destruction of telephone exchange. The Internet system is also not operating.

The civic life has also been seriously disturbed and the prices of kitchen items have shot up. Wheat flour is being been sold at the rate of Rs40 to Rs50 per kg while potatoes, onions and tomatoes are being sold at the rate of Rs60 to Rs80 per kg.

Meanwhile, fateha Khwani and Quran Khwani was held at the residence of former Sindh chief minister, Syed Mohsin Shah Bukhari and Sarhandi house.

M.H.Khan reports from Hyderabad: A relative calm prevailed in Hyderabad as patrolling by troops created deterrence against mob rule and no violent incident was reported on Sunday. However, people continued to face shortage of food and kitchen item supplies in the city as all shops and main markets remained closed as a result of violence following Benazir Bhutto’s assassination in Liaquat Bagh Rawalpindi on December 27.

There was complete calm in the city but majority of people didn’t come out of homes. They are experiencing shortage of food items’ supplies because main markets and shops remained closed.

In some isolated cases some vendors did appear on roads in Latifabad but by and large there was complete closure of bazaars there as well. The district administration has contacted its counterpart in Tando Allahyar to send vegetables so that supplies should begin from Sabzi Mandi where most of vendors’ pushcarts have been torched.

Police have started removing bonfires lit by violent protesters and the burnt vehicles from main roads for ensuring smooth flow of traffic. Movement of vehicular traffic was witnessed in the city but it was very thin.

Edhi volunteers have brought around 50 passengers of Awam Express and set up a camp in their hospital near Auto Bhan road. They were provided food. These 50 passengers were out of those around 1000 passengers who remained stranded near Jalal Mari between Shahdadpur and Tando Adam railway station for two days.

Quran Khawani and soyem was held in different areas. Hyderabad PPP district chapter held a soyem fateha in Saddar area while Sindh Tarraqi Passand Party (STPP) also held soyem fateha at Tarraqi Passand House in Qasimabad. Similar congregations were also held in Phulelli and Paretabad, Kotri taluka and Jamshoro.

The members of civil society lit candles and placed bouquet on the portrait of late Benazir Bhutto outside local press club to pay homage to departed soul. They termed her a brave daughter of the country and said that since Sindh had received its body, therefore, sorrow and grief being felt by its people is high as compared to other parts of the country.

Niaz Mohammad Khan reports from Sanghar: Shops and trade centres remained closed throughout the district. Quran Khwani was held in Jhol, Shahdadpur, Shahpur Chakar, Khipro, Sanghar, Khadro, Tando Adam, Barani and many other small towns and villages for the departed soul of Benazir Bhutto.

More than 1,200 passengers of Awam Express, who were stranded at Jalal Mari railway station near Tando Adam since Thursday, were evacuated late Saturday night by local PPP leaders with the help of Rangers and police.

The passengers of another train Hazara Express, who were stranded at Sarhari near Shahdadpur, would also be shifted on Sunday, said Colonel Maqsood, who had reached Sarhari to monitor the situation. Buses and coaches were being arranged. The passengers were stranded due to damage to railway installations by the miscreants at Sarhari and Tando Adam railway stations.

HBL Sarhari branch, several telephone exchanges, a post office, UC buildings of Hathungo, Hingorno and Kurkali were also damaged.

Mansoor Mirani from Khairpur adds: Khairpur and other main towns remained completely closed. Due to non-availability of food items people faced difficulties. In some colonies, some shops were opened in the evening where flour, sugar and ghee were sold on an increased rate and people had to stand in long queues to purchase the kitchen items.

The patients were the worst sufferer as all the medical stores in the city and others areas of the district remained closed for the last four days. Due to continuous closure of petrol pumps, people used donkey carts for transportation.

Zulfiqar Memon adds from Nawabshah: Civic life remained paralysed in the city and other towns of the district. All shops and business remained closed and no untoward incident was reported.

The citizens continued to suffer due to non-availability of essential commodities whereas transport remained off the road.

DPO Syed Ghayasuddin Rashidi said that at least 20 arsonists were arrested from various parts of the district. He said that Rangers and police were patrolling in the sensitive areas and on the National Highway and the situation was normalising.

Qamaruddin reports from Mirpurkhas: Mirpurkhas city and other towns wore a deserted look as all the markets, bazaars and shopping centres remained closed while no violent incident was reported. Law enforcing agencies were patrolling in the city as well as other towns of the district.

Tension prevailed in Walkart area where law enforcing agencies were deployed to control the situation. The miscreants forcibly entered the building of board of intermediate and secondary education Mirpurkhas late Saturday night and set on fire the building and two vehicles of the board.

Law enforcing agencies reached the spot and fire brigade extinguished the fire. TMA staff started cleaning the roads and streets by removing burnt debris in the city. Traffic was missing from the roads while a few motorcycles were running on the roads.

Owing to closure of the chakkis and wholesale shops, prices of food items also increased. Shortage of vegetables and fruits prevailed in the city as transport was not available from other areas.

Fuel stations were closed causing difficulties to the people to acquire the fuel for their vehicles. Transports on Sanghar, Umerkot, Khipro, Mithi and Hyderabad routes was not available, while train service remained suspended from Mirpurkhas to other areas.

PPP activists held Quran khawani and Fateha khawani at different places on the occasion of soyem of late Benazir Bhutto. Hundreds of workers and citizens attended these programmes.

According to Raja Faqeer Bilalani, spokesman for PPP Tharparkar district, PPP office-bearers and workers of Naukot were implicated in false cases by the police. He claimed that Mithi and Diplo police arrested PPP leader Mohammad Khan Lund, Mehan Bajeer and 58 other workers and shifted them to unknown place.

Mirwah Gorchani, Digri, Tando Jan Mohammad, Jhuddo, Naukot, Jhillori, Kot Ghulam Mohammad and Khaan, also remained closed. All the markets, bazaars, shopping centres remained closed in Umerkot town.

Umerkot police lodged a case on the complaint of Jiando Rahimoon, leader of PML-Q against the PPP workers, including Mumtaz Rahimoon, Aijaz Rahimoon, Haji Jamal and others for looting Rs82,000 cash and setting on fire the shop. Police also registered a case on behalf of state for setting ablaze a bank.

Ghanshamdas adds from Jacobabad: Ghaibana Nimaz-i-Janaza were offered by the PPP and PPP-SB activists and journalists in Jacobabad. Fourteen cases were lodged against 2,000 persons at different police stations of Jacobabad city.

A trader Inder Lal lodged an FIR for looting his flour godown. Police have arrested 20 persons but their names were not disclosed.

Abdul Aziz reports from Naushahro Feroze: Although no untoward incident was reported in any part of the district, life remained completely paralysed as all shops and markets remained totally closed and the public transport remained off the roads.

At least 1,100 passengers of Karachi Express, which was set ablaze at Mehrabpur railway station, remained stranded. However, a meeting was held under the chairmanship of DCO, which decided to arrange 40 buses for the stranded passengers.

The passengers were provided food and shelter by the local people during the last two days.

A marriage party coming from Rahim Yar Khan and comprising 60 people was also stranded at Dargah Allahabad at Kandiaro.

Five FIRs have been lodged at Moro police station of the district against the miscreants who had torched over 118 vehicles and five vehicles of Motorway police and civil courts.

In one of the cases, Senior Civil Judge and Assistant Session Judge Mr Ghulam Mustafa, is the complainant who has filed an FIR against setting ablaze court buildings.

A heavy contingent of police raided different houses in Talib Solangi village, who had looted wheat bags from the godowns of the food department in Naushahro Feroze during the last two days.

Rahmatullah Soomro adds from Shikarpur: The city as well as other towns of the district remained closed.

All the trade centres, bazaars and markets remained closed and all kinds of transport remained suspended.

Ghaibana Nimaz-i-Janaza was offered in the Mirani park which was attended by a large number of citizens. The Quran Khwani was also held at different places in the district.

PPP activists led by Aftab Shaban Mirani staged a demonstration on circular road to protest the assassination.

Iqbal Khwaja reports from Thatta: Amid charged and sentimental atmosphere, the life has gradually started returning to normalcy in the district.

Under supervision of Rangers, the fuelling stations started functioning where long queues of vehicles were seen.

Meanwhile, a high-level meeting presided over by lieutenant-colonel Abdul Qayoom Satti of 206-Brigade Badin, was held here at DCO office and attended by Maj Arshad of Pak Army, Maj Mohammad Atif of Rangers, DCO, DPO, district officer revenue and others.

The meeting taking exception of heavy losses to public properties observed that the miscreants taking advantage of the sad incident carried loot, plunder and arson in the district and none of them irrespective of their influence would be spared.

The meeting advised the people to cooperate with the administration to help rebuild the destroyed infrastructure of the district.

Qurban Ali Khushik reports from Dadu: Johi, Dadu, Sehwan, Sann, Jamshoro, Kotri, Khairpur Nathan and other parts of Dadu and Jamshoro districts remained closed where transport also remained off the roads.

People faced hardships due to shortage of food items.

Mohammad Hashim Khan Bhurgari from Badin reports, life was limping back to normalcy in the district as a few shops were opened after Ghaibana Nemaz-i-Janaza of Benazir Bhutto was offered at Pir Ali Shah Eidgah. Hundreds of the people attended the prayers.

The district administration was holding a meeting to assess the losses of government properties destroyed during the recent riots.

The district police were not confirming the figures of the FIRs registered in the district.

However, this correspondent was informed that score of the criminal cases were registered at Tando Bago police station, while at least dozen cases registered at each police station.

The total and partial loss to at least 12 petrol pumps, 10 banks, seven police stations, nine police mobiles, five police motorcycles, four offices of taluka nazims, six offices of union councils, two offices of revenue mukhtiarkars, other 13 offices of government departments and number of private vehicles and shops were reportedly set ablaze during two days in the violence.

Prem Shivani adds from Mithi: A complete shutter down was observed in all the Tharparkar towns including Mithi, Diplo, Islamkot, Nagarparkar and Chhachhro.

People had to face lot of difficulties due to closure of markets and non-availability of any transport.

No newspaper could reach here on Friday and Saturday.