DADU: Pervaiz Ahmed Chan­dio, the son of slain Baldai union council chairman Raees Karam­ullah Chandio, on Tuesday recor­ded his statement with the investigation team led by the Hyderabad and claimed that MPA Nawab Sardar Chandio’s younger brother, Burhan Khan (who is also a former adviser to the chief minister) himself led the group that had carried out an armed attack on their house in Ahmed Colony in Mehar town on Jan 17 that had left his father and two brothers dead.

Hyderabad SSP Syed Pir Mohammad Shah along with his team visited the Raees family to start the investigation after the case was transferred to him from Dadu SSP Qamar Raza Jiskani on a directive of Inspector General A.D. Khowaja. The directive was issued on Sunday, four days after the incident.

Pervaiz Chandio, who had lodged the FIR at the A-Section police of Mehar town soon after the incident, told the investigators that MPA Nawab Chandio, the chieftain of his tribe in Mehar taluka, had been threatening his father and brothers with such dire consequences for some time because the Raees family’s social welfare activities in the area had overshadowed the Nawab family’s influence and the Nawab Chandio took it as a challenge to his chieftaincy.

He argued that many elite of the area had joined the social welfare body called Tamandar Council which did not go well with the Nawab family.

“Not only the armed group was sent to carry out the attack on our house, but Nawab Sardar Chandio’s younger brother Burhan Khan himself commanded the attack,” Pervaiz Chandio asserted.

Raees Chandio’s two other close relatives, Aijaz Ahmed and Manzoor Ahmed also recorded their statements endorsing Pervaiz Chandio’s version.

Jan 17 tragedy

Raees Karamullah Chandio, Muktiar and Qabil were killed in an armed attack on their house, located in Ahmed Colony of Mehar town, by a group of their fellow tribesmen allegedly led by Ghulam Qadir alias Qadu. Inmates of the house claimed that Qadu Chandio was killed in retaliatory fire.

MPA Nawab Sardar Ahmed Chandio, Nawab Burhan Khan and their four other close relatives Murtaza, Ali Gohar, Sikandar, Zulifiqar and Ghulam Qadir alias Qadu Chandio (who was also killed in the alleged retaliatory fire) were nominated in the FIR lodged by Pervaiz Chandio.

In the counter-FIR lodged by Qadu Chandio’s wife, Bibi Chandio, all three deceased victims — Raees Karamullah Chan­­­dio, and his two sons Mukhtiar and Qabil — as well as Mukhtiar’s son, Saddam, and their two close relatives, Aijaz and Manzoor, were accused of killing her husband. The nominated suspects obtained their interim pre-arrest bail from the district and sessions court on Monday.

Both Raees Karamullah and MPA Nawab Chandio belong to the Pakistan Peoples Party but the Raees family believes the party was protecting the Nawabs in the case as the police were not laying hands on them.

Probe team at work

The investigators also examined the crime scene — in and around Raees family’s house — in Ahmed Colony. They later visited the A-Section police station and spoke to those officers and personnel who were present in the area on Jan 17. They also interviewed some residents of the colony to collect facts and evidence. The investigators then proceeded to the Fareedabad police station where they met Bibi Chandio, who recorded her full name as Dur Bibi Chandio. She recorded her statement and claimed that her husband, Ghulam Qadir Chandio had gone to Ahmed Colony to meet his son-in-law, Pervaiz Ahmed Chandio, She alleged that the inmates, Pervaiz, Sadam, Aijaz and Manzoor opened fire killing him on the spot.

The investigators interviewd her nominated witnesses Mumtaz and Moham­mad Ishaq.

The investigators also examined the place in Wada Suhag village, on link road some 10 kilometres from Mehar town, where a car believed to be used by the alleged attackers was found abandoned.

Area police claim

In his statement with the investigators, a police mobile van driver, constable Fida Hussain, said that as soon as the armed men were seen returning from Raees Kara­m­ullah’s house, one of the policemen riding the van on patrolling duty tried to intercept them. However, he add­ed, his gun stopped functioning after a few shots were fired.

SSP Syed Pir Mohammad Shah, speaking to local reporters, commented on the Raees family’s reservations over transfer of the case to him. He said their reservations were unfounded as Dadu police were not rest­rain­ed from arrested the suspects nominated in the two FIRs.

Complainant Pervaiz Chandio was of the view that transfer of the case from Dadu police to Hyderabad police would certainly affect transparency of the investigation process. He alleged that Hyderabad DIG Javed Alam Odho maintained good relations with the Nawab family and he might extend undue favour to them in the case.

DIG Odho rejected the apprehensions, saying that the Hyderabad SSP was investigating the matter under direct supervision of the IG.

Published in Dawn, January 24th, 2018