SHC moved to form judicial commission over Sakrand incident

Petitioner calls upon court to appoint high court judge to oversee investigation

A petition was submitted to the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Friday, seeking the establishment of a judicial commission to probe the Maari Jalbani village incident, also known as the Sakrand incident.

Tahmasp Rasheed Razvi Advocate, the petitioner, has called upon the court to appoint a high court judge to oversee the investigation, aiming to ensure transparency and impartiality in the proceedings.

In response to the petition, the high court has issued notices to all parties involved, including the Director-General of Rangers and the Sindh Chief Secretary. Representing the petitioner were Barrister Salahuddin Ahmed, Syed Haider Imam Rizvi, and Barrister Shoaib Ali Khatian.

On September 28, four men, with apparently no criminal record, were shot dead and at least five others including women sustained injuries in a raid by the Rangers and the police in a village in Benazirabad, Nawabshah district.

Read more: Four killed in village operation

Caretaker Home Minister Brig (retd) Harris Nawaz claimed that four personnel of the law enforcement agencies (LEAs) were also injured in the incident in the Maari Khan Jalbani Village of Sakrand taluka.

According to home minister, police and Rangers raided the village on a tip-off about the presence of a terrorist but they came under attack by the villagers. The local residents, however, differed with this account, contending that the LEAs wanted to raid the residence of an elderly political worker Rajab Jalbani which caused a confrontation.

As per Sindhi media reports, the LEA personnel tried to barge into the homes without any warrant or warning, the locals tried to talk to them to produce any document, on which the LEA personnel opened fire.

The Benazirabad SSP Syed Haider Raza told the local media that the district police were unaware about the raid conducted by the Counter Terrorism Department and the Rangers.

According to him, when the police went to the village the residents resorted to pelting stones owing to which the cops retreated.