DAWN/The News International, KARACHI
26 February 1999, Friday, 09 Ziqa'ad 1419
HYDERABAD: An emotionally-charged mob encircled the A Section police station here, stoned it and burnt old tyres following the custodial killing of a labourer prompting the police to resort to tear-gas shelling and aerial firing to disperse the protesters on Thursday night.
Armed youths exchanged fire with police, but no one was hurt. Authorities have suspended six police officials allegedly responsible for the death by torture in illegal police custody of the victim. The crowd had brought the body of the deceased labourer to the A Section police station demanding the arrest of the responsible police officials.
As the charged mob put the body of victim inside the premises of A Section police station, the protesting youths stoned the police station, where city chiefs of police and administration were holding dialogue with the members of the bereaved family. At the time when police and armed youths were exchanging fire, the DC and SSP came out of the police station, but were advised to go back.
The situation became tense when angry youths hurled stones at the police station, and smashed the glasses of a police mobile parked outside the police station. In the meantime, the SSP called all the SHOs of Hyderabad city to reach the scene with police force to help the authorities in overcoming the situation. All the routes leading to A Section police station were blocked by the police and rangers and normal traffic was prevented from going to the scene of violence.
The widow and grand-mother of the deceased remained inside the police station prior to the shelling and firing but when the firing started both were pushed outside by the police with instructions to leave the place and go home.
At about 11:00 pm the body of the victim was taken away by Edhi volunteers to the Edhi Centre to bury it as the crowd insisted they would not bury the body until the arrest of the guilty police officials. SP City Umer Sheikh termed the death of victim Gul Mohammad alias Gulloo due to cardiac arrest, while according to sources in the Shah Bhittai Hospital, the spleen of the deceased was found ruptured during the post-mortem conducted by a five-member team of the hospital, which caused the death.
The team of doctors headed by Medico Legal Officer (MLO) Akber Lakhani and comprising Dr Asif, Dr Waqar, Dr Ittefaq and Dr Waheed Khanzada, said after the post-mortem it is premature to say about the actual cause of death, but the external marks of torture and cigarette burn wounds were visible on the legs, hips, arms and back of Gulloo, 32, a daily wage labourer. He is survived by a widow, two sons and a daughter.
The record of the Shah Bhittai Hospital said the staff of A Section police station arrived in civvies at the hospital on Wednesday at about 10:40 pm along with the body of a middle-aged man. The police told the doctors Gulloo fell unconscious because of cardiac arrest, but when the doctors checked him he was dead, said a duty doctor while talking to The News.
Hospital sources added that when Gulloo was pronounced dead by the doctors, the police party left the body at the hospital and returned at 4 am along with a police letter stating that Gulloo was picked up from the Airport road during patrolling and was taken to A Section police station, where he felt pain in the chest. Consequently, he was brought to the Shah Bhittai hospital.
Police said that A Section had picked up Gulloo and Nadeem alias Fauji from their homes located at Unit No 10 (Kachchi Abadi) and Latifabad Unit 12 on February 16 and since their arrest, they were locked up at A Section police station. The A Section police, in order to pressurise the family of Gulloo subjected him to torture, but the family could not arrange Rs 25,000 as demanded by SHO Salman Farooqi for his release.
He was neither produced before any magistrate nor his remand was obtained from any court of law as the police was consistently demanding bribe for his release. Fahmida, the widow of Gulloo, said while weeping: "How could I have arranged the large amount, when I even did not have food for three times?"
A Section Police Station lodged an FIR with crime No. 14/99 under Section 13-D of Arms Ordinance at about 2:00 am on Thursday morning, showing the arrest of Gulloo from the Airport road. Nadeem, the only eye-witness in the case, was booked in another case and sent to Central Prison Hyderabad on 14 days' judicial remand. Sources told this scribe that Gulloo complained to his relatives, who frequently visited the police station for meeting him, that he was being severely tortured. Gulloo had told his relatives that he might be booked in any case of heinous nature if they failed to pay the demanded bribe.
Octogenarian Chuttan whose son Nadeem alias Fauji was picked up along with Gulloo, told reporters that he witnessed Gulloo lying unconscious inside the lock-up when he went to the police station on Wednesday at about 8:00 pm for serving dinner to his detained son who was rubbing Gulloo's swollen feet.
A police official posted at the same A Section police station said on condition of anonymity that following bleeding in stools after being hit in the abdomen by ASI Shahid Abbasi, Gulloo was crying for medical aid. Consequently, he was taken to the Waseem Clinic at Unit No 12 Latifabad where he was given a red coloured intra-venous injection after which he was shifted back to the police station, where he died.
Since Thursday morning, scores of people gathered at the Shah Bhittai Hospital and expressed their anger over the death. City MPA Syed Afzal Shah also reached the hospital and sympathised with the bereaved family and used his influence to get the complaint of the bereaved family lodged.
The emotionally-charged crowd at the hospital blocked the roads and burnt old tyres and demanded the arrest of the policemen involved in the death of Gulloo. A Section police have lodged an FIR against SHO Salman Farooqi, ASI Shahid Abbasi, police constables Niaz and Laeeq and two other policemen under sections 302 Q & D, 342, 161 and 34 PPC. All the nominated police officials have been placed under suspension by the SSP of Hyderabad, but none of them was taken into custody.
The relatives and area people took the body of Gulloo to A Section police station on Thursday night demanding the arrest of the police officials, otherwise they would not bury the body. In a late night development, the District Magistrate (DM) of Hyderabad, Rashid Bashir Mazari, ordered a judicial inquiry into the death and appointed SDM Latifabad Khalid Mehmood as enquiry officer directing him to submit a report within 10 days.
Activists held on murder, robbery chargesKARACHI: During ongoing offensive against the criminals and terrorists, the city police arrested 10 suspects from different parts of the city on Thursday. The Brigade police, on an information, raided a hideout in Lines Area and arrested Muhammad Ali alias Guddu, a unit incharge of Mohajir Qaumi Movement (H). He was wanted in eight cases of murder, robbery and other heinous crimes. The Liaquatabad police held Iftikhar Ahmed from Quaid-e-Azam International Airport while he was leaving for aboard. The police claimed that he was an activist of Muttahida Qaumi Movement and was allegedly involved in a number of cases, including murder and robbery. The Gulbahar police arrested Faheem, Asif, Majid and Shahzad, while Sharifabad police nabbed Sarwer and Haji Akhter. Mominabad police held Rafi, while Shamshair Ali was arrested by Nabi Bukhsh police.
Property dealer murderedKARACHI: A property dealer was murdered by unidentified people in Shahra-e-Noor Jehan police area on Thursday. Azhar Khan, 45, a property dealer, was shot dead by four armed men at his residence (A/135) in Block-I of North Nazimabad in Shahra-e-Noor Jahan police area. His body was shifted to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for autopsy. According to the MLO the deceased received at least seven bullets on his body. Police apprehended that Azhar Khan was murdered in old enmity. Meanwhile, Muhammad Sarwer received bullet wounds in a clash between two groups in Gadap police jurisdiction.
Production of MQM leaders in court orderedKARACHI: The Chief Justice of Sindh High Court, Kamal Mansoor Alam has recommended to the Government of Sindh to set up five Special Anti-Terrorist Activities Courts (ATACs) at KMC Rest House at Queen's Road and Municipal Traffic and Research Institute, Clifton. The CJ made these recommendations on the report of Member Inspection Team (MIT) of the SHC, Zafar Ahmad Khan Sherwani, who inspected the proposed two places and submitted his report on Thursday. It may be mentioned that the government has not finalized the names of presiding judges for these courts so far although it had undertaken to finish the task by Wednesday. The Sindh govt had given assurance to Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid of the Supreme Court of Pakistan that five special ATA courts would be set up in Karachi by Wednesday. The department intimated the CJ that the govt was still considering the list of the names which would soon be submitted to him for final approval.
One injured by carjackers, $85,000 lootedKARACHI: Bandits injured a man on his resistance on Thursday. Besides, bandits looted foreign currency, cash, gold ornaments, electrical appliances and snatched 15 vehicles. Two armed men intercepted a car near NTM in Ferozabad police limits and ordered the owner to hand over his vehicle. When a passer-by Asif caught one of the bandits, his accomplice opened fire and they fled leaving him in a pool of blood. Four armed men intercepted a car in Saddar police precinct and looted $85,000 from Mahmood while he was returning to his office after drawing the cash from a bank. Bandits looted Rs 35,000 and medicines from a medical store in North Nazimabad; cash, jewellery and other valuables from the residence of Khalid Shakeel in Tipu Sultan; cash, gold ornaments and electrical appliances from the residence of Aysha in Baldia Town; cash, prize bonds and valuables from the house of Asif Ali in Baghdadi; cash, gold ornaments and electrical appliances from a house in Gulshan-e-Iqbal, and cash, jewellery and other valuables from a house in Darakhshan. Besides, carjackers snatched three cars, one Suzuki pick-up, one cab and 10 motorcycles.
Police protecting SI in rape case: WAFKARACHI: Governor Moinuddin Haider is determined to weed out rampant corruption prevalent in Sindh's jails and for the first time various jail officials have been demoted or awarded punishment on different charges.
Sources told The News that Superintendent Central Prison Karachi Majeed Siddiqi, an officer of Grade-18, was demoted to Grade-17 on charges of over-detention of a prisoner. Mohammed Arif was released 30 days after the release date in June 1998.
The other charge was that he allowed hospitalisation of two under-trial prisoners against the official time allowed by the competent authorities; they were allowed two and four weeks each but Siddiqi allowed them stay in hospital for four to six weeks. Siddiqi was at present under suspension, the sources added.
Assistant Superintendent Jail Karachi Qamar Raza Zaidi of Grade 14 was charged with over-detention of a prisoner. His pay has been reduced by 10 stages, ie 10 increments taken by him would have to be repaid from his salary. As he was a direct appointee so only such action could be taken against him, sources said.
Superintendent Jail Sanghar Mumtaz Shah was also charged with over-detention of a prisoner and his salary has been reduced by four increments. The sources said disciplinary proceedings were in process against 29 jail officials of Sindh. Show-cause notices have been issued to six jail superintendents and three deputy superintendents besides to lower staff involved in corruption. Sources maintained that the proposal to induct jail superintendents from outside would be implemented as the government wanted to see army officials at top level in Sindh jails.
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