LARKANA: The suspended SHO of Akil police station, SI Talib Hussain Junejo, was sacked in the light of a departmental inquiry into the death of his two subordinates, along with a suspect, in an encounter that had taken place in Wadda Mahar village on Dec 13 last year.

Larkana DIG Mazhar Nawaz Shaikh issued the dismissal order on Monday after all legal formalities were completed.

ASI Muzaffar Khoso and constable Nawab Jatoi were martyred in the encounter during a police raid on a hideout of some wanted outlaws in the village. Riaz Ahmed aka Raja Mahar, a suspected criminal, was also killed in the encounter. The Akil police claimed that Raja Mahar had a criminal record and was wanted by police in many cases.

Inquiry reveals cowardice, ill-planning and mismanagement

SI Talib Junejo, the then SHO of the Akil police station, was leading the raid.

Soon after the encounter, the DIG had ordered an inquiry to ascertain facts about the raid leading to the martyrdom of the two policemen. He suspended SI Junejo and two other SHOs — Inspector Mohammed Uris Noonari of the Shaheed Illahi Bakhsh Siyal police station and SI Ali Hassan Mugheri of the Mahota police station — on Dec 14, 2021 considering that they were also part of the raid.

The inquiry was assigned to the Kashmor SSP, who submitted his report to the DIG on Jan 3. Subsequently, the DIG issued notices to all three suspended SHOs and personally heard them.

The DIG agreed with the findings and recommendations of the inquiry committee and awarded major punishment of dismissal from service to SI Junejo over cowardice, mismanagement and ill-planning on his part during the raid.

In his order, the DIG said that both written and verbal explanations given by SI Junejo were found unsatisfactory. He observed that the allegations against “a member of the disciplined force are very serious and unacceptable”.

The SI has the right to appeal before the IGP within 30 days of the issuance of the order.

The DIG found explanations by Inspector Noonari and SI Mugheri satisfactory and ordered withdrawal of their suspension order.

Published in Dawn, February 8th, 2022