LARKANA: A lady health worker was shot and wounded by four assailants riding motorcycles while she along with her sister was returning home after administering polio drops to children in Korejo village of Garhi Yasin taluka on Wednesday.

The 32-year-old polio worker, Afshan Mahar, sustained a bullet wound in her arm and was admitted to the Chandka Medical College Hospital for treatment. Her sister, Amiran Mahar, escaped unhurt in the attack.

The victim’s husband, Mehtab Mahar, speaking to journalists at the hospital, quoted his wife as telling him that the attackers had objected to her official duty in the village.

They fired at her and sped away, said Mr Mahar. In reply to a question, he said his family had no enmity with anyone.

Our Shikarpur correspondent adds: Shikarpur Deputy Commissioner Sikandar Ali Khushk and Garhi Yasin Assistant Commissioner Naeem Ahmed Abbasi along with the mukhtiarkar of the area and several police officers visited the wounded polio worker at the Garhi Yasin Taluka Hospital, where she was first taken for emergency treatment.

A number of polio workers engaged in field work in the district met the DC and urged him to ensure their safety and security during the anti-polio drive.

The DC issued necessary orders to the district administration and police in this regard.

Meanwhile, a police team conducted a search operation at and around the crime scene and arrested a suspect, Khuda Bukhsh Marfani, claiming that he was one of the four assailants. The police said his other associates would also be arrested as raids on suspected places were being carried out.

Published in Dawn, March 17th, 2016