Nine police stations are already functional in Shikarpur’s riverine area spreading over 149,000 Acres –CM Sindh Murad gets briefing
Shikarpur: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that a well-planned and vigorous `operation clean-up’ is being launched against dacoits and their abettors in the riverine area of Shikarpur and Kashmore districts.
“I have given clear and loud instructions to the police to clean the area and report me,” this he said while talking to the media after reviewing the law and order situation of the area here at SSP office on Wednesday morning.
Inspector General of Police Mushtaq Maher, Regional Police Officer Kamran Fazal, Commissioner Larkana and Sukkur Shafiq Mahesar, DIG Larkana Nasir Aftab, SSP Shikarpur Ameer Saud Magsi, SSP Kashmore Amjad Shaikh, SSP Larkana Imran Qureshi and other senior police officer attended the meeting.
The chief minister said that the police had conducted an operation in which two policemen and a photographer embraced martyrdom. “I have received a detailed briefing about the area and given necessary instruction to the police to bust the gangs of dacoits”.
“As compared to 2008, now the situation is much better in the province but a few areas of katcha (riverine) belt have some problems where dacoits have established their hideouts,” CM said and added that his government was committed to eliminate them.
To a question about the proposed visit of Interior Minister Shaikh Rashid, the chief minister said that he has not been informed about his visit. “I have known through the media,” he said and added that the Interior Minister could visit wherever he wants, including the katcha area of Shikarpur.
In the law and order meeting the Chief minister was told that the Katcha belt of Shikarpur district has the areas of Garhi Tego and Bachal Bhayo spreading over 149,000 Acres where nine police stations, including Naper Kot , Kot Shahoo, Bachal Bhayo, Abad Millani , Jhali Kalwari, Tajo Dero, Jhabbir Shaikh, 20-Mile and Jamalpur were functional.
He was told that there are some tribal feuds in the area which ultimately end up in creating outlaws against each other and then they start robberies, kidnapping and other crimes.
The chief minister directed commissioner Larkano to identify the villages of katcha where roads could be constructed. “With the development of infrastructure, the area would open up automatically,” he said.
He directed the police that base camps should be established as pre-operation activities. The outlaws should be de-weaponized and forced to surrender for clearing of the area. Proper patrolling should be started in the problematic areas through special teams.
The chief minister directed the Inspector General of Police to prepare a combat force by selecting the best policemen so that operations against the dacoits could prove to be final and decisive.
The chief minister was told that different gangs of bandits such as Belo Teghani, Khair Mohammad Khairo, Jhangal Teghani and Mahar Jatoi along with their accomplices were involved in kidnapping for ransom, killing and murders, road robberies and extortion.
Murad Ali Shah directed the police to keep the area cordoning so that no dacoit or his facilitator could escape. “In the operation combat teams should move towards the targets along with APCs and after clearing the area move next target,” he said and added he wanted the entire area should be cleared.
The chief minister was told that the operation against the dacoits in the Katcha area was conducted in the wee hours of May 23 to get six kidnapped persons recovered from the clutches of the bandits. Some six APCs were used in the operation. One of the APCs stuck up when its chain was hit with a rocket launcher. The dacoits opened fires, as a result two policemen were killed and eight, including one inspector injured. The police not only recovered six kidnapped persons from the dacoits safely but killed six dacoits and recovered arms and ammunition including 12.7 mm guns, RPG-7 rockets, hand grenades, a number of G-3 KK rifles and a large number of bullets.
Earlier, the chief minister went to the residence of Constable Munawar Jatoi killed in the operation against dacoits and offered condolence with his brother Aziz Jatoi. He also met with the children of the martyred constable and assured them that the family of the constable would not be left alone. “The government would be providing educational expenditures/scholarships and would continue the salary of the deceased,” he said. He also assured the family of providing them one job and compensation.
Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah also went to the residence of martyred photographer Haseeb Shaikh and offered condolences to his father Safdar Shaikh. In the office of the SSP Shikarpur, the chief minister met with the families of two constables, Barkat Hussain and Khalid Hussain killed by dacoits in Larkana district last week. Then the police had also killed three dacoits with the help of villagers. The chief minister offered one job to each family member of the killed constables. “We will be giving scholarships to the children of the deceased for proper education,” he said. (PR)
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