KARACHI, March 7: Pakistan Rangers personnel launched a ‘targeted-operation’ in the PPP stronghold of Lyari hours after bullet-riddled bodies of its two intelligence officials were found on Thursday.

The operation triggered violent protests in the area and angered the PPP which took it as a move to damage the party’s credibility in its stronghold weeks before the general elections.

Rangers sources said the personnel had picked up about eights suspects from Saifee Lane, Baghdadi, Phool Patti Lane, Dubai Chowk, Cheel Chowk and Lea Market areas in the operation which continued for a few hours and paralysed the city’s oldest neighbourhood.

Earlier in the day, the bullet-riddled bodies of two intelligence officials of Rangers were found in the Mewashah graveyard adjacent to Lyari.

The officials had been kidnapped from Lyari three days ago.

Although a spokesman for Pakistan Rangers denied the ‘operation’ was linked to the killing of two officials, it was generally believed the action was caused by the incident.

Some PPP leaders condemned the operation against “innocent and unarmed people”.

MNA Abdul Qadir Patel, who is PPP’s Karachi division president, said the kidnapping and killing of Rangers personnel had proved that conspiracies were being hatched against the PPP weeks before the elections.  He termed the incident an attempt to defame the PPP and its strongholds in the city.