KARACHI: A reporter working for The Nation newspaper, Abdullah Zafar, was allegedly taken away from his residence in Karachi’s Lawyers’ Society, Scheme-33, early on Sunday morning, according to the family and the media house.

Mr Zafar, the journalist’s father, told Dawn that 10-15 men knocked at the gate of his home at around 3.30am. As soon as he opened the gate, all of them entered the house.

In the meantime, Abdullah Zafar woke up and spoke to the group, showing his press card. But the men would not listen to him and took him away after blindfolding him, said the father. He said two of the men were in police uniform while all the others were in plainclothes.

According to Mr Zafar, the “same group of men” had earlier ‘raided’ the home of his brother in Shah Faisal Colony and taken him away. They freed him later, abandoning him near the Lawyers’ Society.

Zafar said the plainclothes men accused his son of giving a “bogus cheque for Rs50 million to somebody”.

Police had not registered an FIR till late on Sunday night, Mr Zafar said.

Malir SSP Rao Anwar told Dawn that police had not picked up the journalist and that Sindh IG A.D. Khowaja had asked him to look into the matter.

Published in Dawn, July 10th, 2017