SAHIWAL, Oct 27: Police arrested 16 people for illegally occupying district bar room and resorting to violence, allegedly hired by ousted DBA office-bearers, recovering illicit weapons from their possession.

The situation turned ugly when the ousted DBA president Anwar Ali and secretary-general Muhammad Saleem Kodhan tried to seal the bar room following an emergency meeting of the bar executive body chaired by Punjab Bar Council member Tahir Shabbir Chaudhry and the sitting vice-president Rana Shakeel Javed.

At the meeting held on Oct 21, a charge sheet was presented against the bar president containing allegations of financial malpractice, including embezzlement of Rs1.9 million, corruption, misconduct and inefficiency etc.

The meeting unanimously passed no-confidence resolution against the DBA president and secretary-general, recommending legal action against the ousted office-bearers.

It also authorised the vice-president to act as DBA head and the Joint Secretary Sajjad Saleem as bar’s secretary general.

The ousted office-bearers allegedly locked the bar on the Eid night and deployed 16 armed people there.

When the acting president went to the bar room, along with a fellow lawyer, Noor Ahmad Sial, the armed men manhandled them.

Meanwhile, DSP Moeen Butt reached there along with a police contingent and arrested the armed people identified as Rafique, Sabir, Ashraf, Shauki, Barkat, Abdul Razaq, Atiqur Rehman, Muhammad Shafi, Muhammad Shafiq, Muhamamd Amin, Zafar, Taj Muhammad, Niaz Ahmed, Ghulam Mustafa, Hayat and Shaukat Khan.

The Civil Lines police recovered four klashnikoves, two rifles (222mm) and a pistol from the arrested accused.

Rana Shakeel Javed, at a press conference, alleged that the ousted office-bearers embezzled Rs1 million given by Punjab chief minister for the bar room welfare fund, besides the money meant for the library and some other funds which amounted up to Rs2.289 million.

KILLED: A man and a woman were killed and 10 others injured when a passenger wagon overturned near Loharanwali Khui on Sahilwa-Pakpattan road on the day after the Eid.

Reports said the accident occurred when the wagon’s tie-rod went out of order. A deceased was identified as Kabir, while the whereabouts of the dead woman could not be known.

The seriously injured include Nasreen and her son who were admitted to the DHQ hostpial.

The wagon was coming to Sahiwal from Pakpattan.

Police concerned have registered the case while the wagon driver escaped from the scene.

INJURED: Two men were reportedly injured on Eid day when their rivals opened fire on them at Chak 13/11-L.

Reports said the incident was a result of old enmity between Farooq and Mujeebur Rehman groups.