Two cops martyred in bandits' assault on picket

Without let or hindrance, the bandits of the riverine and forest areas in Sukkur and Larkana divisions continue to martyr cops by attacking their check-posts.

Two more policemen were martyred in the wee hours of Sunday as the dacoits of katcha attacked the police picket No47 in the limits of Andal Sundrani police station in Ghotki district.

The Ghotki police claimed that a group of bandits led by Rahib Shar had allegedly attacked the picket and killed the cops. The police believed that the assault was likely a reaction to the killing of two dacoits Muhib Shar and Taudo Shar in a police encounter on June 19 in a katcha area of Ravanti.

Meanwhile, Namaz-e-Janaza of the martyred cops Abdul Qadir Mahar and Zaheer Ahmed Thaeem was later offered on Sunday afternoon after which their bodies were sent to village Aarib Mahar and Ghotki city, respectively. Mahar was appointed in the force in 2007 and Thaeem in 2006.

"The policemen are sacrificing their lives to restore peace in Ghotki," the district's SSP Sumair Noor Channa said while talking to the media. In his cliched statement, the SSP reiterated that the police will not take a sigh of relief until the bandits are eradicated from Ghotki. "The policemen are in high spirits and they will take dacoits to their logical end."

Three cops were martyred in June and two earlier in July in identical attacks on the police pickets in Kashmore-Kandhkot and Ghotki districts. At least seven cops also sustained injuries in the same assaults.

Earlier this year, a politically influential MNA of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Makhdoom Jameeluz Zaman from Matiari district, has urged the Army Chief Gen Asim Munir to launch a military operation to eradicate dacoits of the riverine and forest areas.

Meanwhile, on July 15, Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar said at a a press conference that at least 100 dacoits have surrendered in katcha areas due to hard work and successful strategy of police.

Moreover, IG Sindh, during the press conference had told the media that there were 471 police encounters in the last four months, and significant successes have been achieved against dacoits in the Katcha areas. He said that successes include the killing of notorious dacoit Teeghani and arrest of a dacoit in Ranipur, as well as the killing of a dacoit in Noshero Feroz.

However, despite the Sindh government claims, the incidents of dacoits kidnapping people for ransom and attacks on police checkpoints continue unabated.