News
Tuesday, April 03, 2012
Lyari battle rages on; six more killed* Local PPP leader among those killed
* Two women among 28 injured
* Inquiry ordered into killing of alleged gangster
By Masroor Afzal Pasha
KARACHI: As many as six people lost their lives and another 28 were injured on Monday during a daylong clash between protesters and police in Lyari.
People took to the streets after unidentified assailants shot dead PPP leader Hasan Soomro.
Nabeel Gabool, member of National Assembly from Lyari, said Soomro was standing at Aath Chowk when the unidentified men opened fire on him.
A People’s Aman Committee (PAC) leader said over 20 people were injured in the clashes. He also said the injured were shifted to the Lyari General Hospital, adding that five of them succumbed to their injuries.
The protesters demanded that the high-ups take action against police officials who took part in the “so-called operation”.
The police claimed to have recovered a kalashnikov rifle and a pistol from the possession of alleged gangster Saqib alias Sakhi. Saqib was killed in a police ‘encounter’ in Chakiwara area on Sunday.
However, taking advantage of narrow streets, Saqib’s accomplices, Umer Katchi, Baba Ladla, Abdul Jabbar alias Jeengo, Taj Muhammad alias Taju and others had fled from the scene. An inquiry has been ordered into the killing of Saqib and the Karachi South deputy commissioner has been made the inquiry officer.
The deceased were identified as, Ali, Qasim, Sharif, Zakir, Haq Nawaz and Hasan. The injured include Yasmin, Gul Bano, Yasir, Ghulam Nabi, Sajid, Barkat, Saqib, Sher Muhammad, Yasir, Chaman, Arif, Rehman, Muhammad, Javed, Shahab, Khalid, Shazad, Rashid, Saleem, Umer, Faheem, Shahid, Mumtaz, Saleh, Aftab, Imran, Shahzad and Aslam.
Several unidentified men forced shopkeepers to close down their shops and also exchanged fire with the police the whole day.
On Monday evening, the Sindh government sent fresh reinforcements and deployed police commandos in the area.
Panic gripped the surrounding areas, including Kharadar, where gunshots were also reported. Unidentified assailants resorted to firing and also forced shopkeepers to close down their shops in Landhi, Lasbela Chowk and Nishtar Road areas. Meanwhile, similar incidents were reported in areas stretching from Teen Hatti to Ranchore Line.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk