Two gangsters killed in mysterious encounter in Rawalpindi

Police say they were fellow gangsters as residents dispute official story

ISLAMABAD: It was around 3am when the still of the night was pierced by the loud crackle of gunfire in Rawalpindi’s secluded neighbourhood near Khyaban-e-Sir Syed on August 1.

Jolted uncomfortably  from their sleep, some of the dazed residents braved a peek from their windows to learn the source of this unwelcome commotion.

While they could not immediately see the source of the disturbance, what they did see sent a shiver down them. The found a heavy deployment of police in their streets. Those who had the courage to go out, were promptly told by the uniformed and armed men to stay indoors and that there was an operation against some criminals under way — lookouts notwithstanding.

In the morning, the police announced that they had engaged with some wanted street criminals, killing two of them in an ‘encounter’ with the police.

Residents of the locality, though, found the information hard to digest , not after what they had seen or heard.

“The firing started at around 3:15am and continued for an hour or so,” said a resident of Kashmiri Colony, adding, “The policemen locked our gates from the outside so that we could not leave.”

Another resident, who did not wish to be named, said that he had mustered the courage to go on to the roof of his house to an elevated view of the situation. What he saw next made him question the meaning of the word ‘encounter’.

“Police surrounded the Sheikh Rasheed Pulli and were firing in only one direction.”

The Rawalpindi police, meanwhile, maintained their story of an encounter with street criminals.

Officers said they had received a tip-off about armed gangsters at Sheikh Rasheed Pulli, a narrow bridge on Nullah Leh which connects New Phagwari with Khyaban.

“There were four men. Two of them killed the other two,” said officer Attaullah of the Peerwadhai police station, who has been tasked with investigating the case.

He added that the victims were identified as 24-year-old Amjad alias Gandageer, and 21–year-old Sahil.

The officer said Amjad was wanted by the police in at least 14 cases of armed robbery. Sahil was also allegedly involved in these cases, apparently as an accomplice.

“Encouraged by his frequent criminal activities, Gandageer had become so bold that he did not think twice before shooting whoever tried to resist him,” Attaullah explained.

Residents of the locality backed up the police’s assessment that Gandageer had terrorised the neighbourhood.

“Muggings are quite frequent in this area,” complained a local shopkeeper. People from the neighbourhood chimed in, stating after 9pm, the Sheikh Rasheed Pulli becomes like a no-go area.

“Gangsters rule this area at night and loot whoever passes by,” the shopkeeper said.

Locals echoed the police story, noting that they heard that two criminals had been killed in the loud and frightening encounter.

However, no one had witnessed their bodies being moved, noting that the police hauled them off before dawn.

“It is good that they have been killed notwithstanding how,” a man said, remembering the lawlessness allegedly caused by the suspected gangsters.

Police say that Gandageer, who originally hailed from Swat, was also a cop killer, having allegedly shot Constable Jameel Satti on July 24. Satti had died of his wounds two days later.

“Satti had once nabbed Gandageer in a narcotics case and knew him and his criminal record. Perhaps Gandageer feared Satti would catch him again, so he killed him,” Attaullah explained.

It seems that the death of a fellow officer galvanised the local police into action against Gandageer.

However, police have struggled to explain why would the suspects kill their own ‘ringleader’ and another in the middle of a fierce shoot-out with cops and then manage to escape unhurt.

“It was chaos in which they killed their own men,” said Attaullah.

To a question, the officer said that Gandageer and Sahil were each shot two-three times with a pistol, which possibly means they were shot on purpose.

“Only the suspects themselves can tell why they shot their accomplices,” he retorted.

While residents claimed that the exchange of fire continued for more than an hour, police said it was much shorter, for around 15 to 20 minutes.

“The four men started firing indiscriminately when they saw the police and a few bullets struck the front of a police vehicle,” read an official police account of the incident. It added that no officer was injured in the encounter.

Explaining the escape of the remaining two men, Attaullah said the police had managed to cover three sides of the suspect’s hideout. The two suspects managed to flee from the one side police were unable to secure.

He added that the suspects were still at large and that they have been unable to find any trace of them thus far.

While Gandageer hailed from the Malakand division, Sahil’s family hailed from the Kohistan district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Bodies of both the men were later handed over to their families. 

Published in The Express Tribune, August 7^th, 2018.