THATTA, Aug 13: Police on Saturday registered an FIR against 150 people, including candidates for the local body elections, a local reporter and activists of the People’s Party Parliamentarians.

Those booked had taken out a procession and blocked a road by staging a sit-in on Friday night to protest against the alleged pre-poll rigging by candidates of the ruling coalition.

Those nominated in the FIR lodged by the SHO of the Gharo police station on behalf of the state for staging the protest and thus creating law and order situation included a former MPA and the father of sitting PPP MPA Sassui Palijo, Ghulam Qadir Palijo; chieftain of the Malkani tribe, Sardar Luqman Malkani; Usman Kumbhar, a candidate for the seat of nazim of the Gujjo union council; Gulzar Jokhio, an ADP candidate for the seat of nazim of Gharo; Amir Mustafa Khaskheli, a PPP activist; Gul Baqa Chandio, an ADP councillor candidate of Gharo; Ibrahim Palijo, a councillor candidate of Gharo; Mir Matheno Rind, a local PPP leader; Ali Hassan Jokhio, an ADP candidate for the seat of nazim of Choubandi; Nabi Bux Baloch, an ADP candidate for the seat of nazim of Dhabeji; Mustafa Saryo, a candidate for the seat of naib nazim of Dhabeji; Riaz Abbasi, a correspondent of a Sindhi daily; Moosa Sheedi; and Hakumdar Jakhio.

Police are raiding houses of the nominated people for their arrests.

Meanwhile, MPA Sassui Palijo condemned the registration of what she called a false FIR against ADP candidates and workers.

She observed that such steps by the rulers showed that they had accepted their defeat in the local body elections. She said the ADP candidates would not bow down before “third-degree tactics” of the ruling coalition and defeat it in a democratic way.