SUKKUR: Five pilgrims travelling in a Pajero drowned when the vehicle fell into a canal near Ghotki in the early hours of Wednesday.

Reports from the area suggested that the vehicle’s tie rod snapped while it was passing through an area along Qazi Wah (canal) near Ghotki town. The vehicle went out of the control of its driver and fell into the canal.

Syed Tasawwur Shah, Latif Lohar, Hajan Samito, Nisar Samito and Asghar Mahar (driver) drowned. Their vehicle sank.

After about an hour, the area people came to know about the incident and informed the local police. They started the rescue work until police personnel joined them. However, all five victims had died when they reached the vehicle. The bodies were shifted to the Ghotki Civil Hospital for a post-mortem examination and then handed over to the heirs.

It was stated that Tasawwur Shah, a brother of Dargah Jahanpur Sharif caretaker, and his friends were on their way to the shrine when they met with the accident. The Samitos were residents of Sadiqabad, the police said.

The pilgrims had started their journey from Mirpur Mathelo, they added.

Several thousands people attended the funeral prayers for the victims at the shrine. Tasawwur Shah was laid to rest within the compound of the shrine while the bodies of other victims were sent to their native towns.