SUKKUR: A police team led by an SHO had to pay the price for killing a man, stated to be a thief, some 18 months ago, as tribal elders have already imposed a fine of Rs5.4 million on three of the team’s members while some others are yet to be ‘prosecuted’.

SHO Gul Mohammad of the A-Section police station, Kandhkot, was the first official ‘convicted’ by a jirga (tribal court) that heard the case a few weeks after the death of Challo Bajkani, a resident of Qambar Bajkani village situated in the katcha area of Kandhkot, in firing by the police team. The SHO was ordered to pay Rs3 million to the heirs when the jirga after hearing the aggrieved side and the defendants found the entire team guilty of Bajkani’s murder.

Another member of the police team, Nabi Dad Mangi, was ‘convicted’ in another jirga held a few months later and was ordered to pay Rs1.2 million to the heirs.

On Sunday, a jirga held near Daharki town in Ghotki district again took up the case and heard more arguments, this time against ASI Khairdin Dahani, and ordered him to pay Rs1.2 million to the heirs.

Presided over by Sardar Mehboob Ali and the Pir of Bharchundi Sharif, the latest jirga said they hoped that the two sides would not approach any police station or a court of law nor would they carry out attacks against each other as the matter stood settled.

Amir Bukhsh Bajkani, the brother of the deceased, received an amount of Rs100,000 paid on the spot by ASI Dahani, who promised to pay off the remaining amount of Rs1.1 million within the next three months in three instalments.

The bereaved family urged the Sardar and the Pir to use their influence in bringing the other members of the police team to the jirga and fine them also.

Published in Dawn, September 15th, 2014