BADIN: At least 40 people, including some media personnel, fainted and many of them were injured when police lobbed teargas shells and fired shots into the air after failing to stop participants in a ‘long march’ from entering Badin city on Sunday.

The march, started from Khorwah town and destined for Badin city via Kario Ghanwar and Talhar towns of the district, was organised by two proscribed outfits — the Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM) and Jeay Sindh Liberation Front (JSLF) — whose leaders, activists and supporters mostly riding cars and motorcycles kept raising slogans of Sindh independence all their way.Speaking to the participants, their leaders including Mohammed Rahimoon, Imran Leghari, Hafeez Sindhi and Aamir Memon said the march was organised against “anti-Sindh conspiracies and projects”. They alleged that the federal and provincial governments as well as mainstream political parities were planning and executing projects liked Zulfikarabad, Bahria Town, China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to settle outsiders across the Sindh territory which would ultimately turn Sindhis into a minority and result in usurpation of Sindh’s wealth by these outsiders.

The participants drove up to the Shaikh Umar graveyard —the entry/exit point of Badin city at the Badin-Hyderabad section of the National Highway — peacefully but found police barricades set up there to prevent them from moving ahead. Charged JSMM and JSLF leaders and many activists tried to force their way into the city by breaking the barricades prompting the police force to spring in action.

The police baton-charged the activists to push them back but the action aggravated the situation as the marchers attacked police with stones. The police resorted to heavy shelling causing many of the activists, including some women, to faint. Despite the police action, several vehicles carrying activists broke the barricades and tried to move ahead. The police fired shots into the air to bring the situation under control.

However, the clash continued for about three hours during which the vehicular traffic on the highway remained suspended.

About two scores of activists sustained injuries during the baton-charge while about 40 people, including five media personnel covering the incident, fainted under the influence of teargas. They were taken to various health facilities near Badin.

JSMM and JSLF leaders claimed that 50 of the marchers were arrested during and after the clash but police denied having many any arrest.

Badin SSP Abdul Qayyum Pitafi told the media that police were ordered to stop the march from entering Badin as it was led by leaders of proscribed outfits. He said police baton-charged the participants and lobbed teargas shells to disperse them when the unruly marchers turned violent and pelted the force and private vehicles with stones.

Mr Rahimoon, who was among the injured leaders, spoke to some journalists by phone to tell them that the march remained peaceful until police deployed near the graveyard stopped it and started beating up the participants. He said Aamir Memon, Muzaffar Zaur, Ghafoor Perihar, Mohammed Khan, Rajho, Bilawal, Hafeez Chang, Ishaque, Soomar, and three women, Ms Sabhaghi, Ms Shafa and Ms Fatima were injured in the police action.

The march organisers claimed that women and children were among around 50 persons arrested and taken to undisclosed places.

The SSP rejected the claim saying that no arrests were made. He said that leaders and activists of the proscribed outfits intended to create a law and order situation in Badin and incite people to join in their anti-state activities.

After receiving such intelligence reports, the higher authorities ordered police to stop the march from entering Badin, he added.

Published in Dawn, February 8th, 2016