May 12, 2008	Monday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 6, 1429

KHAIRPUR, May 11: A trader who was kidnapped 25 days ago was freed on Sunday after a gun battle, said police.

Police said they had received information that some criminals were staying in the house of Muharram Chandio near Chandia Morr in Khairpur city and a kidnapped man, Attaullah Rajput, was in their control.

A police team raided the house and after an exchange of fire with the criminals that lasted one hour, police recovered the kidnapped trader, police officials claimed.

They claimed that four kidnappers identified as Wahid Bukhsh Jagirani, Ghulam Akbar Rind, Karim Bukhsh Lohar and Mohammad Sharif Mirjat had been captured and armed recovered from their possession. All of the arrested people belonged to district Shikarpur, police sources said.

Attaullah Rajput was kidnapped in April from Mehrabpur town of Nausharo Feroze district.

ACCIDENT: Twenty-five people were injured when a passenger bus overturned after its tie- rod broke down.

Reports said that the Choondiko-bound bus was coming from Kot Bungalow. The bus overturned near Choondiko and fell into a ditch.

The injured people were taken to a hospital in Choondiko from where some of them were referred to Khairpur and Sukkur civil hospitals.