Law and order: 8 held for ‘assaulting’ police team

Residents accuse police of beating up relatives of a kidnapping suspect in the Layyah village.

MULTAN:

Eight people, including a kidnapping suspect, were arrested on Monday on charges of attacking a police team from Nankana Sahib, injuring several policemen, during their raid to arrest the kidnapping suspect.

The assailants were identified as Wazeer Ahmed, Najabat Ali, Amanat Ali, Mazhar Abbas, Laal Hussain, Abdul Sattar and Muhammad Hanif and Waris Ali.

Nankana Sahib police had raided to arrest Ali who was wanted in a kidnapping case at Mangarawala police station.

The FIR registered in the assault case also mentioned 34 unidentified people, 15 women and 19 men. It was registered under Sections 395 (dacoity), 324 (murder attempt), 224 (resistance or obstruction by a person to his lawful apprehension), 225 (resistance or obstruction to lawful apprehension of another person), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 183 (resistance to the taking of property by the lawful authority of a public servant), 186 (ostructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 440 (mischief committed after preparation made for causing death or hurt) and 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement) and 148/149 (rioting) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

Chobara police said seven officials were injured in the assault, five were discharged from Layyah district headquarters (DHQ) hospital after first aid. Two officials, Constable Ramazan and ASI Chaudary Mehmood, suffered fractures in their arms and were still under treatment at the DHQ hospital.

Talking to The Express Tribune, some residents of TDA-311 area said policemen in plain clothes had broken into the house of Waris Ali by scaling a wall at 4am in the morning. They said they rushed to the aid of women and children of Ali’s family who were beaten up and dragged out on to the street by the police.

Layyah District Police Officer Shaukat Abbas said the police team from Nankana Sahib had raided the area with his permission. “Some police officials from Chobara station also accompanied them in the raid to arrest the suspect,” he said.

He denied that policemen had raided the area in plain clothes or that any innocent citizen was beaten up by the police. He said some of the assailants may have been beaten by police in self defence.

He said the raiding team was carrying arrest warrants for Waris Ali, who is accused of kidnapping one Asma Bibi, a resident of Nankana Sahib.

SHO Qaisar Shah said the assailants had also snatched weapons from two policemen and detained them until an Elite Police team was sent to rescue them.

He said several residents of the area, including the family of the kidnappings suspect, had fled the area following the incident.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 3^rd, 2012.