Sindh Police arrests 21 transgenders for ‘rioting’

Initially, five persons were arrested on a resident's complaint regarding illegal activities

KARACHI: Darakshan Police claimed to have arrested 21 transgender persons for vandalising public property, trespassing, intimidation and rioting on Sunday night.

According to the police, they initially arrested five transgender persons from Badr Commercial area in Defence Housing Authority (DHA) on the complaint of a resident that the transgender persons were selling narcotic substances and streetwalking in the area around his house, due to which his family was perturbed. The complainant added that the transgender persons had even tried to harass him when he asked them to stop the activities.

When the police arrested four suspects and brought them to the station for interrogation on Sunday night, at least a dozen transgender persons reached the station and started protesting against the law enforcers. They broke the windows and glass doors and even a water cooler. At one point, the police were so outnumbered that they stepped aside and simply watched the scene unfold.

Soon after, Darakshan SHO Shahjehan Leghari arrived with backup and detained all the protesters in the lockup.

According to Darakshan DSP Zahid Hussain, they had received a complaint that some transgender persons were selling Ice as well as various other narcotic substances. On Sunday night, SHO Lashari carried out a raid and took five transgender persons in custody.

SHO Lashari said that the arrested transgender persons not only stand in groups in Badar Commercial and sell drugs, but are also involved in other illegal activities.

Back at the station, the situation grew out of control as the suspects at first broke a water cooler and then started smashing the glasses on windows and doors by hurling chairs against them. They also scuffled with the police personnel and tried to snatch weapons and sticks from them.

According to the police, the arrested suspects were identified as Ghulam Sarwar alias Meena Naz, Saqlain alias Mehak, Shah Nawaz alias Shani, Zeeshan alias Rubi, Faisal Bashir alias Sonia, Sahil alias Al-Shifa, Muhammad Zafar, Sadat Shah Bukhari, Gulabo, Malaika, Sonama, Ansar Ali alias Pinky, Muhammad Zain alias Sweety and Shehnaz, among others. Two separate cases have been registered against the arrested suspects for vandalising government property, vagrancy, spreading vulgarity and scuffling with police personnel. The arrested suspects will be presented before the court on Tuesday. 

Published in The Express Tribune, October 1^st, 2019.