September 30, 2008	Tuesday	Ramazan 29, 2008

JACOBABAD, Sept 29: Around 300 people including a large number of women held a rally on Monday in protest against chairmen of District Zakat, Ushr Committee and Baitul Maal, accusing them of being corrupt.

The rally started its march from Zakat office and reached the press club after marching on different roads of the city. The protesters also blocked the DCO Road for an hour before reaching the press club.

They were raising slogans against the chairmen of district zakat and ushr committee and Baitul Maal.

Old widows including Haseena Begum, Anwar Begum, Mumtaz Khatoon, Ms Malookan told journalists that the two heads of committees were corrupt. They were swallowing up funds meant for the poor by issuing cheques to their favourites, they alleged.

Our Sukkur correspondent adds: Hundreds of poor and needy people including elderly women held a demonstration in front of the office of district chairman of zakat committee on Monday in protest against delay in disbursement of zakat funds.

The protesters led by Sodho Khan, Dil Murad, Ms Gullan and Ms Hazoraan blocked entrance to the office of the chairman of zakat and ushr committee and staged a sit-in for two hours.

They told journalists that the committee chairman Hafeezullah Jatoi and his staff were involved in favouritism and nepotism. They had given zakat cheques only to their near and dear ones at the expense of hundreds of poor and needy people who were running from pillar to post for their right, they alleged.

They accused the chairman and his staff of being rude towards the recipients of zakat fund. They were asked to collect cheques from the office on Monday and when they came no one was available in the office, they said. They demanded that the Sindh government probe into the zakat funds released to all the talukas and union councils of Sukkur district.

Meanwhile, chairman of zakat and ushr committee Hafeezullah Jatoi said in a press release said that Rs7.5 million had been released to local zakat committees of 246 dehs of the district and advised the registered zakat recipients to collect fund from their respective zakat committee.