IG meets father of slain Hindu brothers

Police have not been able to arrest the killers so far, AD Khawaja admits

HYDERABAD: Sindh Inspector-General (IG) of Police Allah Dino Khawaja has called the murder of the two Hindu brothers, Dilip Kumar Maheshari and Chandar Kumar Maheshwari, as one of the saddest incidents in the recent history of Mithi, Tharparkar.

IG Khawaja made this remark on Sunday while talking to the media after visiting the father of the slain brothers in Mithi. "The police didn't expect that such an incident of killing would occur in a peaceful place like Tharparkar," he said.

The IG was also briefed on the ongoing investigation by the local police.

The two trader brothers were shot dead on January 5 during a robbery, which, according to many locals, was the first incident of its nature in the desert region after many decades. After the murders, local traders observed a shutter down strike for three days and also blocked roads connecting Mithi with other districts. The Sindh High Court also took suo motu notice of the killings on January 8.

Although the police sources circulated images taken from closed-circuit television camera footage of two persons riding a motorcycle as suspected assailants, the IG said the real culprits were still at large.



"So far no eye witness has surfaced and this isn't helping the police in the case," IG Khawaja said. He also dismissed the criticism over deployment of the Tharparkar police for the Pakistan Peoples Party's public meeting in Mirpurkhas district on the very same day, which was cited as the reason behind the escape of the killers.

"It can't be described as a security lapse," the IG said, adding that providing security at public meetings was also a police responsibility.

The provincial police chief told the media that officers from other districts of Sindh had also been engaged in the inquiry and that he was personally monitoring the progress on a daily basis.

According to IG Khawaja, the investigators were making headway in the case but so far neither could the killers be caught nor could the stolen cash and items be recovered. "We can't arrest an innocent person just to show our performance," the IG said.