MITHI: Investigating officer Inspector Siraj Lashari of a labourer’s alleged murder case on Tuesday requested judicial magistrate in Mithi to order quashment of a theft FIR against the victim and his eight co-workers, saying that no such thing was found in his probe.

He submitted a detailed report in court and said that none of the nine workers, including deceased Dodo Bheel, was found involved in the alleged theft.

The FIR was lodged by a guard, Huzaifa Malik, associated with the security firm hired by the mining company operating in Thar coal project’s block-II, near Islamkot.

“It could not be established during police investigation that any of the nominated persons was involved in the incident [theft] which did take place on the premises of the Thar coal fields,” the report stated. Security guard Malik was later nominated as one of the prime suspects in the cases pertaining to the alleged detention and torture of the workers and resultant death of Dodo Bheel.

He is at large while the other suspects, including in-charge of the security firm, Syed Kashif Raza aka Commando, and Qamar Abbas, have been facing an investigation into the whole affair.

Published in Dawn, August 4th, 2021