HYDERABAD, Feb 18: Rangers officials disarmed SHO of Hussainabad police station and five other policemen in Qasimabad following complaints of area people outside a polling station here on Monday.

However, DPO Hyderabad secured their release after negotiations.

“It was some misunderstanding with rangers officials but all policemen, including Arshad Leghari, the SPO of Qasimabad, and Wahid Bux Leghari, are performing their duties. They have not been arrested or suspended”, the DPO told Dawn over phone after he got SHO Hussainabad released.

People of the area hooted the policemen to give vent to their anger. Earlier, they had smashed and badly damaged a car which had government number plate (GS-4902). A PPP supporter, Ehsan Ali Abro, said that supervising police officer (SPO) Qasimabad, Arshad Leghari, arrived there with some unconcerned persons to cast bogus votes but they were caught inside the polling station, located in government primary school Hadi Nagar, Qasimabad. He said that Leghari fled from the area while firing in the air.

“I caught one policeman, who was being taken away by SPO Arshad Leghari after covering his face, from polling station”, said UC Nazim Mehboob Abro, who has recently joined PPP and was present inside polling station. He said he had removed hood from that man who happened to be a policeman.

Assistant presiding officer claimed that Imtiaz Ali Memon told him that some people in civvies came inside and demanded ballots at gunpoint. He said that they were later told that SPOs Arshad Leghari and Ayub Durrani accompanied these people, who wanted to cast bogus votes.

Witnesses said that Arshad Leghari and others managed to escape by firing in the air. Later, they said, when SHO Hussainabad police station Wahid Bux Leghari came there to take back car, area people got hold of him and called rangers. Rangers officials detained Leghari and six other policemen, disarming them as well.