SIALKOT, Sept 19: Police have busted an inter-district gang of leather thieves and arrested its five members. Sialkot DPO Nisar Ahmad Saroya told newsmen on Sunday that a team raided Pasrur's rural areas and arrested Akram alias Akku gang's five members. It also seized leather and leather goods worth Rs50 million stolen from different factories and shops in the district.

The DPO said the arrested accused - Akram, Arshad, Saifullah, Abbas and Ashfaq - were wanted by the Sialkot and Gujranwala police in more than 15 criminal cases. The seizure included 3.3million leather jackets, a number of leather sewing machines, a pickup and illicit weapons.

The DPO said the district police, during the current year, had arrested 5,180 notorious proclaimed offenders (POs) and smashed 46 inter-district gangs.

PTU protests: The Punjab Teachers Union has strongly protested against the 'forcible' collection of a special fund of Rs200 per head from teachers by the education department for giving a warm reception to a local MPA.

Addressing a meeting at the Government Jinnah Islamia Boys Elementary School, Daska, PTU Information-Secretary Abdul Rashid Nagra, President Syed Mehdi Shah and other office-bearers alleged that the Sambrial education authorities had forcibly collected the amount from teachers for giving a warm reception to a local MPA.

The PTU leaders said the Daska education authorities had also collected hundreds of thousands of rupees from students of primary and elementary schools as 'Paper Funds' at the rate of Rs5 and Rs10 respectively violating the Punjab government's ban on collecting paper charges from students. They urged district Nazim Mian Naeem Javaid and DCO Syed Tahir Raza Naqvi to look into the matter.

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