Strike against trader’s killing continues

Protesters say crime rate on the rise, police remain helpless

TANDLIANWALA:

Traders’ protest against the killing of a colleague of theirs continued for the second consecutive day here on Sunday.

A mobile shop owner had been killed the other day when he offered resistance to three robbers who robbed him of Rs325,000 and three valuable mobile phones before they shot him dead.

According to the police report, Nazir Ahmed, son of Shah Mohammad, a resident of Mohalla Sarwar Colony, Street No. 2, Tandlianwala, told the police that his son, Mohammad Nadeem, had established a mobile phone shop off Pul Nehar Bangla Satiana Road.

He said that his son, Nadeem, along with a friend of his, were on their way home at 8pm on November 11 when three armed robbers who had been pursuing them intercepted his son at gunpoint and robbed him of three mobile phones and Rs325,000.

The victim’s father said the robbers shot his son thrice when he tried to resist them. Police registered a case and were searching for the robbers.

Read Gujranwala reports 500 street crimes in a month

The rising crime rate in the district has made the people of the district feel very, very insecure, and they are wondering what the police are doing as far as providing them with security is concerned.

There have been six murders in the Jaranwala division, two in Saddar division, six in Iqbal division and three in Madina division in Faisalabad this year. In addition, about 200 people have been shot at by robbers upon resistance.

Faisalabad being the third-largest city of Pakistan runs a business of billions of rupees. People pay taxes to the government on time, but no protection is provided to them.

No wonder the resentment of the protestors who staged the protest over the killing of the trader, Nadeem. The protestors reminded the authorities of the fact that the crime rate was rising and the police seemed to be helpless to nab the wrongdoers.

Saddar SP Malik Abdul Latif, DSP Nasir Mushtaq and Tandlianwala SHO Khalid Pervez arrived at the protesters' venue to negotiate with them. They assured the protestors of the police’s resolve to arrest the killers of Nadeem soon.

It is not that just the traders feel insecure in the province. Violence affects people from all walks of life, and there is no dearth of the causes behind those incidents of violence.

Just last month as many as nine people lost their lives while one sustained serious injuries after a volley of bullets was unleashed at a group of people in the Chowk Mahi area in Rahim Yar Khan.

According to the police sources, a group of people was present at CNG and petrol pump and an adjacent seed shop when an armed group raided the place and opened fire on them.

As a result, nine people died on the spot and several got injured.

The injured were rushed to the THQ hospital in Sadiqabad. The deceased were identified as Ghulam Nabi, Nazeer Ahmad, Munawar, Zaheer Ahmad, Muhammad Shareef, Farooq Ahmad, Allah Dad and Abdur Razzaq.

The incident was reportedly the result of a family feud between both groups. Eight of the deceased belonged to the same family. DPO of Rahim Yar Khan, Asad  Sarfaraz, and other police officers concerned reached the site of the incident.