Riot: Nine arrested for attacking food inspection team

FAISALABAD:

Ghulam Muhammad Abad police and police teams of the Gulberg police station, the Women Police Station and the Raza Abad police station conducted several raids and arrested nine people on Wednesday and Thursday for rioting and injuring an assistant commissioner and his team during inspection at a beverage factory on Tuesday.   

Police have registered a case against five nominated and 250 unidentified people under Sections 342,506-B, 354 and 186  of the Pakistan Penal Code [wrongful confinement; intimidation; assaulting women; hindering official business] and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act.  Earlier, the police had arrested the factory owner Rana Sajjad and 11 others. The operation to arrest the remaining rioters is being led by Lyallpur Town SP Malik Owais.

The police spokesperson said AC Shahrukh Niazi had led a raid at Sajjad Soda Water Factory in Siddhupura on August 25 after they received complaints that spurious beverages were being manufactured there.

The factory owners and employees of the factory had locked the factory gates and detained the officials. The AC called the police upon which the factory workers gathered neighbours and attacked the raiding team with bricks and beverage bottles.  He said the riot lasted an hour at least, after which reinforcements arrived. The police broke the factory gate down and freed the officials. 

Published in The Express Tribune, August 28^th, 2015.