Notorious clan: Shopkeepers, traders rally to support police

175 members of Odh families were arrested for several crimes.

FAISALABAD:

Several shopkeepers and traders on Wednesday took out a rally in support of Mureedwala police for arresting 175 Odh men and women this week.  

Shopkeepers shut their shops, suspending business activity for several hours, and participated in the rally. They held banners and placards in favour of the police and demanded action against the Odh suspects.

Anjuman Tajran Mureedwala Chairman Khalid Mehmood, PYO President Samundri Najji Gujjar and PML-N Youth Wing Mureedwala Vice President Nadeem Qasim led the rally.

Mehmood said, “Most of the Odh men arrested are criminals and have been named in a number of cases.”

He said the clan was known for robberies, kidnappings for ransom and extortion. “When police raid their houses, they send women to confront the police,” he said.

Mehmood said that the Odhs had vexed the people of Mureedwala and surrounding areas.

Qasim said, “Odh families are known for fake-gold frauds and drug trafficking.

Police should thoroughly interrogate the people arrested so they can provide leads on some of the dead cases.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 27^th, 2013.