FAISALABAD, April 10: Hundreds of residents of Chak Jhumra blocked roads of the area for traffic on Wednesday to protest against the killing of the father of a councillor by a police team.

Headed by SHO Abdul Ghaffar Bajwa, a Jaranwala police team raided the house of councillor Dilshad Ahmad in Chak No 159 RB late on Tuesday night. The councillor was wanted by police for his alleged involvement in a fraud case.

Some personnel of the Chak Jhumra police also accompanied the raiding team which entered the house by scaling the boundary wall. The police arrested a young boy, Naveed, from the house when they did not find Dilshad. Members of the raiding team also severely beat up Dilshad’s father Rana Sadiq, who fell on the ground and died on the spot.

Area people gathered outside the house of Dilshad early on Wednesday when they received information that Sadiq was tortured to death by police.

Later, they blocked all area roads for traffic and started chanting slogans against Jaranwala SHO and other policemen. They were also demanding immediate arrest of all policemen who tortured the elderly man to death in his house.

Some of the protesters blocked the service lane of the motorway for traffic by burning old tyres and erecting barricades. They also pelted stones on some vehicles.

A senior police officer reached the spot and assured the protesters that stern action would be taken against the officials found guilty during preliminary interrogation and in the light of postmortem report. The protesters dispersed on his assurance.

When contacted, the Chak Jhumra police station clerk told this correspondent that Rana Sadiq died of heart failure some hours after the raid by Jaranwala police team. He said that the matter was being interrogated by ASP (Saddar Circle).

The police had not received the postmortem report. Notables of Chak Jhumra and some elected representatives were present in the police station for registration of a murder case against the accused policemen.