KOHAT: The shopkeepers whose shops were looted here the other day have refused to lodge an FIR as a protest, saying nobody has been arrested even after the third strike by robbers in the area.

Jamal Khan, leader of the shopkeepers of Darrewal Banda where four shops were deprived of cash, electronics and groceries, lamented that the police came with a delay of five hours after they lodged a complaint.

Mr Khan told mediapersons on Friday that when they came on Thursday morning they found locks of their shops broken and all goods and cash looted.

They immediately informed the police post at 7am and waited for them to come for taking fingerprints and collecting other evidence. However, he said when nobody responded they opened their shops at 11am.

When contacted, in-charge of the police post said the shopkeepers had refused to file a case for unknown reasons. He said he had advised the shopkeepers to hire a watchman for protection of their properties.

Meanwhile, district police officer Shafiullh Gandapur on Friday gave a go-ahead for action against drug dealers, loan sharks and land mafia.

Chairing a meeting, he stressed that no compromiseshould be made on protecting the life and property of the people.

IT PARK: The alumni of Kohat University of Science and Technology (KUST) and social circles on Friday demanded restarting of the information technology park lying unused since 2014.

The alumni president Robel Khan and Kohat Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Hanan Shah told this correspondent on phone that the park was very useful for the students who were searching for jobs after graduation.

They regretted that the park was closed down abruptly just a few months after its establishment.

FORMER MPA PASSES AWAY: The president of All Pakistan Contractors Association and former MPA, Shaukat Habib, breathed his last after protracted illness on Friday.

He was the son of prominent philanthropist Ghulam Habib. His funeral was offered in Togh Bala which was attended by a large number of people. He was laid to rest in Togh Bala graveyard.

Published in Dawn, October 9th, 2022