KARACHI: A 14-year-old boy was shot dead during an exchange of fire between police and alleged drug pedlars in the Mominabad area in the early hours of Monday morning. The incident triggered a protest by area people, prompting the authorities to suspend the SHO and order registration of a murder case against a policeman and a private person.

However, an inquiry was also ordered by the DIG West to determine the role of the police.

Karachi West SSP Mohammed Younis Chandio said the police received a complaint on Madadgar-15 about consumption of drugs by Kashif alias Dabbu in Quaid-i-Awam Colony of Orangi Town.

“As a police party took him into custody, certain area people put up resistance and tried to get him freed from custody,” said the SSP.

The alleged drug pedlars also resorted to aerial firing to get the held suspect released, which was responded to by the police. During an exchange of fire, 14-year-old Rehan, who was standing outside his home, sustained a critical bullet wound in the chest and died.

The death of the teenager angered area people, who protested outside the Mominabad police station, attracting the attention of higher authorities. They ‘pacified’ the protesters by suspending Mominabad SHO Mumtaz Marwat and registration of a murder case against a policeman, Majid, and a private person, Tahir. They both were arrested.

Orangi Town SP Abid Ali Baloch told Dawn that an FIR (483/2017) was registered against the policeman and the private person under Sections 302 (murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code on a complaint of the victim’s father, Fida Husain Shah, as he nominated both of them. The SP confirmed that the arrested policeman was suspended earlier while the private person worked as a “police source”.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2017