HYDERABAD: Eleven people suffered injuries following a scuffle between two groups at Shaheed Chowk in Khipro town of Sanghar district on Thursday.

The trouble started when activists belonging to the banned Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) tried to block the path of a mourning processing, claiming that the mandatory permission for the procession was not obtained.

The procession was taken out by participants of a majlis, held in the Asgharia Imambargah in connection with the Chehlum of Hazrat Imam Hussain (RA).

Some people from both sides engaged in a scuffle, during which stones and clubs were used. Area police said eight persons were injured, but staff at the Khipro Taluka Headquarters Hospital said that they provided treatment to 11 injured persons.

Nine of them were discharged after being provided with basic first aid while two were referred to the Mirpurkhas Civil Hospital for treatment of skull injuries, said Dr Farooq, an official at the district health office.

Sanghar SSP Abid Baloch told Dawn over the phone that sectarian tensions in Khipro had been brewing for a few days after the organisers of the majlis made their intention to take out a mourning procession public.

The local chapter of the banned ASWJ had raised objections over the procession without mandatory permission.

The SSP said that the organisers of the congregation had been warned against taking out a procession.

“Police had also told the two sides that if anyone broke the law, then law will take its course,” he said.

An FIR would be registered against those involved in the violence, he added.

Police personnel have been deployed at different spots in the area to maintain law and order.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2023