LAKKI MARWAT: The Bannu police have solved a blind murder case of a woman by arresting four suspects, including a woman, SP investigation Aqeeq Hussain claimed on Saturday.

He told reporters that two suspects wearing masks had killed a woman, Sareeda Bibi, 45, inside her house in Zargar Mamakhel area on August 19. He said a complainant, Bastaba Bibi had told the Haved police she woke up on hearing gunshots at midnight and found her sister-in-law, Sareeda Bibi lying in a pool of blood. The woman said she saw two unidentified suspects fleeing the crime scene.

SP Aqeeq said regional police officer Qasim Ali Khan had constituted a team headed by him to trace the killers.

“We obtained the caller data record (CDR) of the complainant, rounded up several suspects on its basis and interrogated them. During interrogation, two suspects, Suleman and Fidaullah, confessed to the murder in connivance with Bastaba Bibi,” the police officer said.

SP Aqeeq said another suspect, Attaullah, had hired Suleman and Fidaullah through Bastaba Bibi for Rs500,000 to kill Sareeda to grab her 180 kanals of land.

MOSQUITO NETS SOUGHT: The people of Lakki Marwat have asked the health department to provide them with insecticide treated nets (ITNs) to keep them safe from malaria.

Talking to reporters on Saturday, they said several urban and rural areas had become hotspots of malaria.

“In view of the surge in malaria cases the ITNs are in high demand in Lakki,” Noman, who is suffering from the disease, said.

Another citizen said malaria posed a serious threat to lives of locals, especially children and pregnant women. “The prevalence of disease can be judged from the fact that there is hardly a house where a malaria patient is not present,” he added.

According to the health department, a total of 8,611 malaria cases were reported during the first six months of this year in the district. Health officials blamed the increasing cases on rain-induced flooding, incomplete treatment and people’s failure to adopt precautionary measures.

But residents said malaria incidence had increased both in urban and rural areas due to non-provision of ITNs.

Frontier Primary Health Care district coordinator Azmat Ali Shah said his organisation with support of the health department would soon launch a door-to-door survey to collect data of individuals for provision of ITNs to them.

District health officer Dr Abdugul said free diagnosis and treatment of malaria was available at the health facilities across the district.

He said his department had carried out fumigation in malaria hotspots and free mosquito nets would be provided to people.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2023