KARACHI: A son of renowned Sindhi poet, artist and former producer of the state-owned PTV Bedil Masroor has gone “missing” in the metropolis.

His family said Hans Masroor, 43, said to be an IT expert, was whisked away by people clad in ‘police-like uniform’ in a vehicle similar to a ‘police mobile’ on Sharea Faisal outside his Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) office in the FTC building on Tuesday.

Bedil Masroor told Dawn his son had left his office on Tuesday at 8:45pm in his car. As he drove to the main road some unknown people travelling in a white vehicle intercepted him. Since then, his whereabouts were not known. His cell phone was switched off and the car was missing, he added.

The father said they had submitted an application to the Saddar police station on Wednesday.

SSP-South Syed Asad Raza confirmed to Dawn that they had received an application about Hans Masroor’s disappearance and that they were looking into that.

The police said that they were trying to obtain CCTV footage of the route. “So far, two CCTV footage have been obtained; one of which shows him exiting FTC gate and the second one shows his car being escorted by an unknown white Vigo.”

The application regarding younger Masroor’s disappearance was filed by his nephew Abdul Rahim. He stated that on July 18 at around 8:50pm they came out of their office and moved towards the nearby NICL building. He and his friend were riding a motorbike while his uncle was driving his car.

As they came out on the main road, one white vehicle, which ‘resembled a police mobile’ in which one person was seen wearing a police T-shirt and Khaki pants indicated Hans Masroor to stop.

Another person who also “resembled a policeman” was carrying a sub-machine gun. He moved towards Masroor.

The complainant said that he assumed that it was a routine check by police and he moved ahead on his motorbike. But that was the last time he saw his maternal uncle, he added.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2023