BAHAWALPUR: The railway traffic on the Sammasatta-Kasur section was suspended after two bogies of the Farid Express derailed near the Gaggo railway station in Vehari district on Friday.

According to Pakistan Railways (PR) and Rescue 1122 officials, the train was going from Karachi to Lahore via Vehari and Kasur. They said that after leaving the Gaggo railway station, two bogies of the train derailed, blocking the track. No loss of life was so far reported.

The derailment caused the track to be blocked on the Karachi-Lahore section and railway traffic on the section was suspended.

On receipt of information of the derailment, PR officials rushed to the scene and a relief train was called to clear the track. The relief train was due to reach the scene at the time of filing of this report.

BURNT: Two persons including a girl were burnt in two separate fire incidents in Hasilpur in Bahawalpur district and Burewala in Vehari district on Friday.

In Hailpur’s Adda Mukhtiarabad on Vehari road, a mentally challenged young girl Hajira (16) suffered serious burns when a cattle pen’s shade abruptly caught fire. According to Rescue 1122 officials, she was alone in the house and could not rescue herself from the fire and she received serious burn injuries.

The rescuers shifted her to Hasilpur THQ Hospital where her condition was said to be serious.

Rescue officials said that the cause of the abrupt fire could not be ascertained as yet.

In the second incident, An 18-year old boy was burnt by fireworks at a wedding function at Lalazar Colony of Burewala.

Rescue 1122 officials said that during a wedding function in a house, a youth identified as Hamza suffered serious burns by fireworks. He was shifted to the Burewala THQ Hospital, where his condition was said to be serious.

ACCIDENT: A driver was killed and 21 passengers were injured, 12 of them seriously, after a coach and a container collided on the Multan-Sukkur Motorway.

According to Multan Rescue 1122, the coach coming from Karachi collided with a parked container, as a result, coach driver Ahmed Jan (50) was killed, while 21 passengers sustained injuries. Rescuers said that nine of the injured were given first aid at the scene, while the other 12, including six women, were shifted to the Nishtar-2 Hospital, Multan for treatment.

The body of the driver was shifted to the Nishtar-1 Hospital, Multan.

The police and highway police were at the scene for the completion of legal formalities after the death of the coach driver.

Meanwhile, an overspeeding truck ran over and killed ten-year-old Abdul Rehman on the Multan-Muzaffargarh Road. Multan police arrested the truck driver.

LIFE IMPRISONMENT: A Vehari additional session judge handed down life imprisonment along with a fine in a murder case.

According to the prosecution, convict Ashfaq Ali had gunned down one Abdul Rehman on Nov 29, 2022 at Chak 463/EB Burewala tehsil in the limits of Fateh Shah police station.

According to the FIR, registered on the complaint of deceased’s father Muzaffar Akram, his son was injured by the firing of Ashfaq Ali over a minor dispute. He said that his son suffered serious injuries and was shifted to a hospital in Multan, where he died the next day.

Police arrested Ashfaq Ali and submitted his challan in the court. The judge handed down life imprisonment along with a fine of Rs500,000 on Ashfaq Ali.

MURDERED: A husband allegedly shot dead his wife in Zafar Colony in Burewala city of Vehari district.

According to the police, there was a family dispute between the alleged killer, Muhammad Tariq, and his wife Samina Bibi, mother of four children. During a quarrel, Tariq allegedly flew into a rage and opened fire on his wife. Samina died on the spot and he fled from the scene, police said.

A Burewala city police team rushed to the scene along with forensic units and collected evidence from the murder scene. Police shifted the body to the Burewala THQ Hospital and registered a case against the fleeing husband.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2025