Tribal wars: Conflict between clans over kidnapped girl paralyses town

Police have registered FIR against 22 members of the Shar clan.

SUKKUR:

Businesses were temporarily closed and examinations were postponed in Thari Mir Wah town due to rising tensions between two clans, Jogi and Shar, over the kidnapping of a Jogi girl on May 11.

A woman, P*, and her 10-month-old daughter were allegedly kidnapped by Jawed Ahmed Shar and his accomplices on May 11. Her family initially thought she went to visit her parents at their residence in Karachi. When they couldn’t trace her there, they accused a member of the Shar clan, Jawed Ahmed Shar, of kidnapping her.

This sparked tensions between the two clans and fight broke out during which two members of the Jogi clan, Nisar aka Papoo and Suhail, were injured. They were taken to the taluka hospital.

Thari Mir Wah police registered an FIR against 22 members of Shar clan, including Javed Ahmed Shar, Khadium Shar and Mumtaz Shar, on the complaint of Abdul Wahab Jogi, P’s husband.



Bad for business

Tensions have been on the rise in Thari Mir Wah town since the dispute. Members of the Jogi clan allegedly tour the town in small groups and fire in the air to force shopkeepers to shut down.

The Rangers and the police deployed in the town have not been able to control the law and order situation. The shopkeepers also tried to open up their businesses on Saturday but a group of men allegedly opening fire after which they shut them again.

Students pay the price

The conflict has also disturbed the schedule of annual examinations. Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Sukkur’s controller of examinations, Mahmoodul Hassan Khokhar, has postponed some of the intermediate examinations. “The postponed papers will be held after May 31,” he added.



A history of violence

A relative of P, Haji Roshan Jogi, claimed that Jawed Ahmed Shar and his clan members were involved in kidnapping her. “A couple of years ago, Shar clansmen had kidnapped two girls of the Jogi clan who were traced later because some influential people intervened,” he added. He claimed that the police were not ready to arrest the accused men due to their political influence. He also alleged that the newly elected representatives of the town were supporting the kidnappers.

“We have raided the houses of the culprits but they have abandoned them,” said Thari Mir Wah DSP Fida Hussain Dahar.  “We have confiscated their cattle and hopefully, the kidnapped woman and the culprits will be traced soon,” he added.

*Names changed to protect privacy

Published in The Express Tribune, May 26^th, 2013.