HYDERABAD: The Inquiry team formed by Sindh Inspector General of Police Ghulam Nabi Memon on last year’s serious rift between the Sukkur DIG and Ghotki SSP has submitted its findings to IGP with members of the team having different viewpoints.

The IGP said that competent authority would look into it to proceed with the recommendations as per law.

The inquiry was instituted in October 2024 following the October 16 letter addressed by DIG Pir Mohammad Shah to the IGP and somehow leaked to the media. The leak exposed the harangue of Ghotki SSP Dr Hafeez Bugti against the DIG.

The DIG had accused the SSP of “treading a dangerous and unprofessional path” by engaging with notorious criminals involved in multiple heinous activities, including killing of policemen, kidnapping for ransom and looting police weapons.

SSP Bugti had shared his views with the media against DIG Shah over is letter after SHO Shakoor Lakho’s arrest while also naming Hyderabad DIG Tariq Razak Dharejo for pressuring him to release Lakho in the wake of the October 14 killing of an alleged dacoit, Umer Shar along with Ali Mohammad Shar, a cousin of former PTI MPA Shaharyar Shar. Shaharyar had remained unhurt.

The IGP removed the two officers following the controversy and formed the team to probe the whole episode. Since then the two officers were posted in Central Police Office (CPO) Karachi. The inquiry team had submitted its findings last month but the IGP returned it with the observations that it was not drafted in line with the relevant terms of references (ToRs).

The committee consisted of Imran Yaqoob Minhas, Additional IGP Counterterrorism Department, as its chairman, Amir Farooqui, DIG Crime & Investigation Sindh, and Tanveer Alam Odho, DIG Finance, as members.

It was asked to inquire into the contents of the DIG’s letter against the SSP; to inquire into allegations levelled by SSP in the media; to ascertain conduct of the DIG and SSP in the aftermath of incident of firing on ex-MPA Shaharyar Shar, to ascertain working relationship and differences between the DIG and SSP regarding ongoing anti-dacoit operation in Ghotki.

Sources privy to the probers confided to Dawn that Minhas and Farooqui had found fault on both officers’ ends as far as ‘official line of police professional working’ was concerned whereas DIG Odho had mostly talked about uncalled for conduct of SSP Bugti.

When contacted, both DIG Pir Mohammad Shah and SSP Bugti declined to offer any comment saying that they were restrained by the hierarchy from discussing anything in the media. The officers have given their viewpoint before the inquiry team, and Dawn has learnt that the two officers were heard in person jointly for well over two hours.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2025