August 26, 2007	Sunday	Sha’aban 12, 1428

BADIN, Aug 25: The district coordinator of Tawana Pakistan Project, Mohammad Qaiser Anis, on Saturday accused special assistant to chief minister and leader of Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Murtaza Memon, and his men of attacking the office and manhandling the staff.

Mr Anis told Dawn that police, understandably under pressure, were dilly-dallying on registering FIR against Mr Memon and his men, and demanded protection for his staff.

He said that 18 officials, including five women, were working in the office of Tawana Pakistan Project, which was being run by the Ministry of Social Welfare and Special Education, Pakistan.

He said that on Thursday morning, he received a phone call from somebody who claimed to be leader of MQM, Murtaza Memon, and threatened they would not allow him to wok if he hired anybody without his recommendation.

Minutes afterwards, Mr Memon in a vehicle (GS-7304) along with four armed men barged into his office, used abusive language and manhandled the staff. They did not even spare the newly appointed women field staff, he said, adding, that before leaving the armed men ransacked the office and threw out office record.

Mr Anis said that immediately afterwards, he informed higher authorities, including governor’s information officer, Irshad Jilani, about the incident and sent written complaints to the governor and DPO requesting them to order registration of FIR against the attackers. But no action had so far been taken though the newly appointed DCO of Badin had assured him of prompt action, he regretted.

Project officials, Nuzhat Mehmood, Ambreen and Shumaila, said that the attackers were so enraged that they used abusive language even against women and beat up their colleagues who tried to stop them.

A senior project official said that the staff found it very hard to continue working under such an atmosphere of fear where the attackers were still at large.

When contacted Murtaza Memon categorically denied all the charges levelled against him by Mr Anis while the joint zonal in-charge of MQM office Badin, Faqir Ibrahim, said that he had been asked by his party headquarters to send a report about the incident.

The RPO of Hyderabad and the DPO of Badin could not be reached for comments while TPO Nazeer Abro admitted that no FIR had so far been registered and the reason was best known to authorities.