LARKANA: The First Additional District and Sessions Judge of Larkana Rashid Dayo on Thursday ordered stoppage of salary and blocking of CNIC of an investigation officer (IO) for continuously avoiding the hearings of cases against Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) leader Ghulam Murtaza Jatoi.

The judge also ordered issuance of non-bailable warrant for the arrest of the police officer while adjourning the cases to Nov 15.

Mr Jatoi, who also heads the National Peoples Party, has been regularly appearing in the court along with his lawyers. On Thursday also, he was present in court for the hearing of the cases registered against him at the Dokri and Badah police stations of Larkana district.

Five criminal cases have been registered against him at various police stations and the Anti-Corruption Establishment.

ADJ Dayo expressed his displeasure over the IO’s absence from the last three hearings and again the fourth one on Thursday.

He ordered stoppage of the IO’s salary and blocking of his CNIC. He also ordered that a non-bailable warrant be repeated for his arrest.

Later, speaking to media outside the court, Mr Jatoi said that two witnesses had already been testified in one case, but the IO seemed to have no time to attend the court hearings. He apprehended that he was being prevented by someone from appearing in court.

In reply to a question about registration of several cases against him, he remarked that in Pakistan, especially in Sindh, anything could happen to anyone, be it a minister, a lawmaker, a Nawab, a tribal chief or even a ‘Khan’.

A fifth criminal case was registered against him at the Bagerji police station of Sukkur when Mr Jatoi, a former federal minister, had been remanded in judicial custody for 14 days in this attempted murder case and he was about to be freed on bail in three other cases.

His judicial remand was granted by a civil judge and judicial magistrate-II in the case registered under Sections 324,109, 506/2, 148 and 149 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

He was earlier granted bail in a case registered vide FIR No. 2/25 at the Dokri police station of Larkana district; and FIR No. 17/25 registered at the Hingorja police station of Khairpur district.

The additional district and sessions judge-II of Khairpur had granted him bail while ADJ-I also granted him bail in the Dokri case. Writs of releases dated Feb 24 in both cases had reached the administration of the Special Prison Nara.

Earlier, he was discharged from Liaquat University Hospital (LUH), Hyderabad, where he was shifted after feeling chest pain. He was brought back to the Nara prison from hospital. Jatoi was also booked by the Anti-Corruption Estab­lishment vide FIR No. 1/25 in Moro town of Nausharo Feroze district.

Meanwhile, GDA secretary general Dr Safdar Abbasi, speaking to journalists present at court on Thursday, also strongly condemned, what he called, “political victimisation of Ghulam Murtaza Jatoi and his family”.

He regretted that exploitation of Sindh’s farmers and peasants continued under the incumbent provincial government “perhaps worst ever”. He added that the GDA and other parties took a strong stance on the water issue, forcing the government to kneel and convene a CCI (Council of Common Interests) meeting to temporarily defuse the situation. Responding to a query, Dr Safdar said we believe this government has failed on all fronts — water, law and order, health, education.

“In the health sector, apart from SIUT and NICVD, just look at Chandka Medical College Hospital whose infrastructure is collapsing. Taluka hospitals, district hospitals, rural health centres and basic health units are all in ruins. In these 18 years of rule, the infrastructure has been destroyed to such an extent that we can no longer proudly point to anything as a hallmark of Sindh. Cities across the province — including Larkana, Karachi, Moro, Naushahro Feroze, Ubauro, Kashmore, and Qambar — are in a state of decay, reflecting the government’s utter failure,” the GDA leader observed.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2025