KARACHI, July 13: All field police officers of grade 18 and above of the Sindh police have been summoned at Islamabad for their meeting with President Pervez Musharraf on Friday. Well-placed sources said here on Wednesday it was for the first time that all the senior officers have been summoned at the federal capital, where the president would hold a meeting with them. However, the agenda of the meeting could not be ascertained, sources said, adding the officers were informed across Sindh after a formal invitation was received by the Sindh police from the presidential house.

A senior officer said on condition of anonymity the role of police in the forthcoming local bodies’ elections may be discussed during the meeting with the president and he may issue some guidelines to police officers.

However, another police officer requesting anonymity said the president was concerned about the increasing incidents of cell phone snatching and street crimes with regard to Sindh, with particular reference to Karachi.

He said that the local bodies’ pre-poll scenario may also come under discussion and the president may be keen to know the strategy being adopted by the police to handle the situation.

Sources said that all of the field officers, who had been posted in operations branch, had been summoned at the capital and other officers, who had been working as staff officers were not invited.

They said a total number of 57 officers from grade 18 and above across the province would leave for Islamabad on Thursday evening.