SUKKUR: The ringleader of the dreaded Sanu Shar gang was gunned down along with his two associates in a fierce gun battle with a strong force comprising police and Rangers contingents drawn from Sindh and Punjab on Sunday.

The Sanu Shar gang had virtually established its rule over the riverine area between upper Sindh and southern Punjab and the vast area had been made a ‘no-go area’ for people and security forces as the gang possessed sophisticated heavy weapons.

The gang had been involved in attacks on police, kidnapping for ransom, murders, dacoities, highway robberies and other heinous crimes for long.

On Sunday, police and Rangers launched a targeted intelligence-based joint operation in Daulatabad and Rwanti, along the Ghotki-Rahimyar Khan riverine areas.

In an hours-long battle, the outlaws belonging to the Sanu Shar gang, which used sophisticated heavy weapons including rockets, were forced to retreat. Alim Shar (who is ringleader Sanu Shar’s brother) and two other notorious dacoits were gunned down. A number of other gangsters were wounded in the battle.

According to the joint force, the gang suffered heavy casualties.

Sources in the area said that three dreaded dacoits, Alim Shar, Haji Shar and Mitho Shar were killed and scores of their gang members were wounded in the fierce battle.

The targeted operation was physically monitored by DPO Rizwan Umar Gondal.

Published in Dawn, May 6th, 2024