176 criminals surrender

DERA GHAZI KHAN:

The crackdown against riverine (kacha) criminals in south Punjab continues, with Rajanpur police reporting that 176 outlaws have surrendered over the past four days alone, officials said.

The figure does not include separate surrenders in Rahim Yar Khan.

Many of the suspects were wanted in dozens of cases involving kidnapping, murder and armed robbery.

Among those who laid down arms are several high-profile criminals carrying substantial head money. Police identified five notorious outlaws, Ataullah Putt, Dado Bangiani, Gora Umrani, Wahab Lund and Mujeeb Lund, each carrying a bounty of Rs10 million.

Others include Shah Deen Lund and Matara Sukhani, each with Rs5 million head money, as well as Nawab Sukhani and Waqar alias Waqari Umrani, both wanted with Rs2.5 million bounties. Authorities said the surrender process is ongoing.

Regional Police Officer (RPO) Dera Ghazi Khan, Azhar Akram, told The Express Tribune that the operation is being carried out under Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz's "Safe Punjab" initiative, which treats the riverine belt challenge as a priority.

He said Rajanpur police had been equipped with modern resources, including thermal drone technology, advanced weaponry, armoured personnel carriers (APCs), bulletproof vehicles and improved infrastructure.