LARKANA: Police on Monday claimed to have arrested one of the most wanted suspects believed to be a militant working for the proscribed Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army (SRA) following an encounter near the city’s municipal stadium.

The FIR registered on the compliant of ASI Nazeer Ahmed Sangi at the Civil Lines police station stated that while on patrolling and snap checking duty in the area he and his colleagues noticed three persons — later identified as Ghulam Mehdi alias Aqib Chandio, Kamran Chandio alias Zainul Abedin and Rashid Khoso — moving suspiciously along the railway tracks near the stadium.

The ASI said that when the police team tried to approach the suspects for questioning, they opened fire, which was returned. Following the encounter, Kamran Chandio was overpowered and arrested but his two companions managed to escape.

The information cell of the Larkana police in a statement released to the media said that Kamran had links with the SRA and was wanted by police in several subversive and terrorist attacks including the one that had left Tanveer Rajput dead and Taj Mohammad Pathan wounded a few months back. The attack, it said, was aimed at triggering linguistic riots.

According to the FIR, a hand grenade was seized from Kamran, against whom cases of terrorism and other heinous crimes had already been registered at the Civil Lines police station.

The cases against him have been registered under Sections 6/7 (terrorism/punishment for act of terrorism) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, sections 324 (attempt to murder), 302 (punishment for qatl-e-amd), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 401 (punishment for belonging to gang of thieves), and sections 4/5 of the Explosive Act.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2021