SUKKUR: City police on Thursday evening picked up three suspects and launched a hunt for several others after Hindu General Panchayat (HPG) Jaco­babad president Lal Chand Seetlani made a complaint against them alleging that they manhandled him during a session of the community gathering held earlier in the day.

The police picked up Arjun Das aka Deewan, Ashok Kumar, Pardeep Kumar and Vaneesh Kumar and lodged them in the lock-up. A hunt was on the other suspects nominated in the complaint.

Reports from Jacobabad suggested that alleged incident of manhandling took place during a debate over the local Hindu community’s course of action in the wake of a young girl’s conversion, reportedly to marry a Muslim man.

The girl, Mehek Kumari, has adopted ‘Aleeza’ as her new name after embracing Islam.

One group at the session insisted on intensifying pressure on the authorities’ concerned and the ongoing campaign for the recovery of the girl whereas the other group was of the view that the matter should be left to the judicial adjudication.

The heated debate ended up in a brawl, sources said.

They said that one group was led by HGP Jacobabad president Lal Chand Seetlani and the other by its former president Babu Mahesh Lal Lakhani.

Reports from the area also suggested that many supporters of Mr Lakhani had gone underground to escape arrest amid panic and fear among members of the local community.

Published in Dawn, January 24th, 2020