BAHAWALPUR: Musafirkhana police booked 11 alleged middlemen on the charge of fleecing sugarcane farmers by establishing illegal sugarcane procurement centres in the district.
Saddar tehsil Assistant Commissioner Zahid Hussain on the complaints of sugarcane farmer and mills conducted raids in the suburbs of the city, including the areas of Musafirkhana, Kalanchwala, Kote Dadoo Ghalloo, Noorpur Noranga, Wahi Hussain and Khanpur Noranga, where unauthorised sugarcane procurement centres were established by 11 office-bearers of a fake farmers’ association. Those booked men included Abdul Mutlib, Muhammad Qasim, Mushtaq Ahmed, Muhammad Zulfiqar, Muhammad Akram and Tariq.
According to the first information report (FIR) registered under sections of the Sugar Factories Control Act 1950 and Sugar Factories (Control) Amendment Ordinance 2020, the Saddar AC complained that the nominated men had set up illegal procurement centres where they deprived the growers of due price of sugarcane, paid them less than the fixed price and shifted their commodity illegally to the Sindh province to sell it at higher rates.
According to police, none of the suspects had been arrested yet as they had fled when the police conducted the raids.
It may be recalled that the sugar mills in the district had been protesting the opening of illegal and cheap purchase centres where the ‘outsiders’ purchased sugarcane and shifted it Sindh. They also deprived the local sugar mills of the commodity in the crushing season.
ELECTION: Thirteen office-bearers of the district bar association were declared elected in the annual election last night. They included Vice President Tahir Ahmed Gujial, Finance Secretary Rao Zafar Nawaz, Library Secretary Abid Masood Khan, auditor Muhammad Ishaque and members of executive council, Mian Muhammad Naam, Qazi Mukhtar Ahmed, Khawaja Ghulam Murtaza, Makhdum Kalimullah Hashmi, Khalid Mehmood Abbasi, Wasim Nawaz, Hafiz Muhammad Islam, Shafiq Ahmed Malik, Majid Riaz and Muhammad Aseam Asim.
According to election committee chairman Tariq Shaheen, polling on three main slots of president, general secretary and joint secretary could not be held due to differences on the voters’ list. Election on these slots would be held after the revision of the voters’ list.
CYLINDER BLAST: A man suffered serious burns in a gas cylinder explosion in a shop on Kangan Road in Mohallah Shikari in Ahmedpur East.
According to Rescue 1122 official Abid Rahim, some people were sitting by the fire in the LPG decanting shop, owned by one Jamshed. The gas cylinder caught fire and the blast occurred. The shop also caught fire, which was extinguished by the rescuers.
As a result of the blast, Javed (38) suffered serious burns. He was shifted to the THQ hospital where his condition was stated to be serious.
Police reached the spot to take action against the shopkeeper but he managed to flee from the scene.
Meanwhile, in a road accident, a motorcyclist, Muhammad Yousaf Bashir (45), was run over and killed by a speeding trailer near Khanpur Mirchanwala on the Ahmedpur East road. The trailer driver fled after the accident but police claimed to have arrested him.
Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2021
