DADU, Dec 13: Three bandits and a police officer were killed in an encounter which ended at 8am on Monday after 20 hours. Police succeeded in freeing two hostages who had been kidnapped by the dacoits.

This was stated by Provincial Police Officer Syed Kamal Shah while briefing journalists at the DPO's office here on Monday. The encounter was partly covered in Dawn's Monday issue.

The RPO said the encounter followed the kidnapping of two residents of Kakar, Zafar Ali Pario and Qamaruddin, by the gang of Ilyas Chhabro in the Jehajapur village on Saturday night.

He said the kidnapped villagers were recovered during the encounter in which Thariri Mohabbat police station SHO Inspector Murtaza Memon and bandits Ilyas Chhabro, Bahadur Chhabro and Ali Gohar Sakhani were killed.

He said the chief minister had announced Rs600,000 for the family of the SHO. He said the government would pay full salary to the deceased's wife till she reached the age of 60 years and would also bear expenditures of education and health of the policeman's sons.

He said the chief minister had also announced to allot 32 acres of land in Kachho area to the family. Meanwhile, the PPO ordered the regional police officer to initiate an inquiry against officials investigating the murder case of one Ghulam Haider Panhwar.

Earlier, a large number of women, belonging to the Panhwar tribe and carrying the Holy Quran, staged a protest before the PPO against the investigation team. They were led by relatives of the deceased, Bashiran and Hakeeman Panhwar.