A 2-million-rupee question
Police, criminals fight over who killed dacoit Ghulam Qadir.
GHOTKI:
A monetary reward of Rs2 million - announced by the government as head money for the capture of a dacoit identified as Ghulam Qadir, also known as Qadri Chachar — seems to have added to the mystery behind Qadir’s death on Friday. The police claim that they killed him but according to other reports, his was killed by an enemy.
Qadir lived in the Salam Chachar village in the kachcha area of Ghotki. According to sources, he had exchanged hot words with a man identified as Babur Chachar two days ago. Sources claimed that Babur’s friends had approached Qadir on Friday and had asked him to accompany them to Babur’s house to resolve the matter. As soon as Qadir entered Babur’s house, the friends attacked Qadir with sticks and beat him to death.
In a contradictory statement, Ghotki DPO Saqib Ismail Memon told The Express Tribune that the Ghotki police had raided Gemro on Friday after receiving a tip-off regarding Qadir’s whereabouts. The police arrived at the scene to cordon off the area, said Memon, adding that Qadir had seen them coming and opened fire at them. Qadir was shot dead in an ensuing exchange of fire, said Memon.
Qadir was wanted by the police in more than 40 cases, including murder, robbery, kidnapping-for-ransom and the killings of 10 policemen, including the murder of Gemro SHO Dino Narejo one month ago.
He was also involved in the looting of trains, buses and banks in the wake of Benazir Bhutto’s assassination in December 2007, said Memon, who added that the government had also announced Rs2 million as head money for Qadir’s capture.
The making of a bandit
Qadir was born to a family of bandits. His father, Ghulam Rasool Chachar, and uncle, Ghulam Nabi Chachar, were both bandits and lived in the Ramzan Chachar village in the kachcha area of Ghotki when Qadir was a boy. After both brothers were killed in an encounter with the police, Qadir moved to the Salam Chachar village, where he committed his first murder.
Qadir was arrested and sent to the Central Jail Sukkur in 1995. However, he managed to escape in January 1996 when he was taken to the court in Ghotki for a hearing along with 27 other prisoners.
On the way back from the court, the police van carrying the prisoners back to Sukkur was attacked by unidentified armed men near Dubbar. The incident resulted in the death of four policemen and freedom for 27 prisoners, including Qadir, who was never arrested again.
Although he was embroiled in a feud with a man identified as Mooso Lolai — also a criminal — for most of his life, sources claimed that Qadir had recently stopped fighting with Lolai’s gang and was busy cultivating his agricultural lands, apart from holding jirgas to settle the differences among the Chachar community.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 23rd, 2010.
A monetary reward of Rs2 million - announced by the government as head money for the capture of a dacoit identified as Ghulam Qadir, also known as Qadri Chachar — seems to have added to the mystery behind Qadir’s death on Friday. The police claim that they killed him but according to other reports, his was killed by an enemy.
Qadir lived in the Salam Chachar village in the kachcha area of Ghotki. According to sources, he had exchanged hot words with a man identified as Babur Chachar two days ago. Sources claimed that Babur’s friends had approached Qadir on Friday and had asked him to accompany them to Babur’s house to resolve the matter. As soon as Qadir entered Babur’s house, the friends attacked Qadir with sticks and beat him to death.
In a contradictory statement, Ghotki DPO Saqib Ismail Memon told The Express Tribune that the Ghotki police had raided Gemro on Friday after receiving a tip-off regarding Qadir’s whereabouts. The police arrived at the scene to cordon off the area, said Memon, adding that Qadir had seen them coming and opened fire at them. Qadir was shot dead in an ensuing exchange of fire, said Memon.
Qadir was wanted by the police in more than 40 cases, including murder, robbery, kidnapping-for-ransom and the killings of 10 policemen, including the murder of Gemro SHO Dino Narejo one month ago.
He was also involved in the looting of trains, buses and banks in the wake of Benazir Bhutto’s assassination in December 2007, said Memon, who added that the government had also announced Rs2 million as head money for Qadir’s capture.
The making of a bandit
Qadir was born to a family of bandits. His father, Ghulam Rasool Chachar, and uncle, Ghulam Nabi Chachar, were both bandits and lived in the Ramzan Chachar village in the kachcha area of Ghotki when Qadir was a boy. After both brothers were killed in an encounter with the police, Qadir moved to the Salam Chachar village, where he committed his first murder.
Qadir was arrested and sent to the Central Jail Sukkur in 1995. However, he managed to escape in January 1996 when he was taken to the court in Ghotki for a hearing along with 27 other prisoners.
On the way back from the court, the police van carrying the prisoners back to Sukkur was attacked by unidentified armed men near Dubbar. The incident resulted in the death of four policemen and freedom for 27 prisoners, including Qadir, who was never arrested again.
Although he was embroiled in a feud with a man identified as Mooso Lolai — also a criminal — for most of his life, sources claimed that Qadir had recently stopped fighting with Lolai’s gang and was busy cultivating his agricultural lands, apart from holding jirgas to settle the differences among the Chachar community.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 23rd, 2010.