QUETTA, Aug 26: Seven persons including four fishermen were injured, two of them seriously, as personnel of a law-enforcement agency opened fire on protesting fishermen resenting the use of prohibited wire-nets for fishing on the Gwadar coast, on Monday. The firing was unprovoked, protesters claimed.

Three members of law-enforcers also received injuries one of them was shifted to Karachi with two fishermen who received serious injuries.

According to reports eight women fell unconscious following heavy shelling of tear gas on the protesting fishermen by the police in a bid to disperse the protesters. A number of shops were also attacked and burnt following the shooting incident. In all 10 persons were injured in the coastal township, unofficial sources claimed.

The serious injured persons were identified as Wahid Bakhsh and Ali Bakhsh who were shifted to Karachi for specialized treatment as their condition was precarious. Two others, Imam Bakhsh and Fida Hussain, were admitted to the local hospital, where their condition was reported to be stable.

According to sources, the protesters became unruly and violent when they saw a jeep carrying government functionaries and reportedly tried to manhandle them. One of them fired blank shots in the air in a bid to disperse the mob.

Sources claimed that protesters started pelting stone on the members of law-enforcement agency and one soldier was attacked with knife and wounded, which resulted in opening of direct fire on the mob wounding four of them. In all three government functionaries sustained injuries, a police officer told Dawn on phone.

Sardar Akhtar Mengal, President of the Balochistan National Party, claimed at a news conference late night that the wounded persons received bullet injuries on their head and chest indicating that there was a shooting to kill and not to scare away the crowd. He blamed Navy personnel for firing on the fishermen and demanded that an FIR should be registered against them and handed over to administration for further legal action. He also demanded to hold a judicial inquiry through a judge of the High Court.

Earlier, the protesters staged a rally at the Gwadar Fish Harbour and closed to jetty and reportedly destroyed the nets and prohibited fishing gears. When they came out of the jetty, they clashed with the government functionaries on the road.

Following the shooting incident and wounding of four protesters, the trouble spread to all over the town and sporadic clashes reported with the police. It caused tension. The SSP, who was present on the occasion, reportedly ordered firing of tear gas shells on the protesters in which at least eight women fell unconscious. It was the provocation forcing the protesters to become unruly and started attacking shops and other property.

The fishermen have given a strike call in Gwadar to protest against police firing and use of prohibited fishing nets. The fishermen are constantly protesting against the banned wire-nets and other fishing gears to protect the marine life on Balochistan coast.