MUZAFFARGARH: A murder case was registered against a man and his 200 men who had clashed with a PML-N MPA and his associates over a land dispute on May 9 that resulted in the killing of a passerby, some 75km away from the city, police said on Saturday.

Police sources said according to the first information report, MPA Rai Mansab and his son with his companions allegedly wanted to occupy the land of Hakeem Khan at Chak 519-TDA. Khan and his men were present on the site when the MPA and his party reached there. A crossfire ensued during which a bullet hit a passerby, Gul Khan, who died.

Sarwar Shaheed Chowk police reached the spot and registered a case against the MPA and his men. But later they submitted an application to the police claiming they were not present on the spot as the MPA was attending a chief minister’s meeting through a video link. They further claimed Hakeem Khan’s bullet had hit the passerby and he had also set one of their tractors and his tenant’s house alight.

District Police Officer Rai Zameerul Haq said he had constituted a special team under Kot Addu Deputy Superintendent of Police Abdul Rehman Asim who was looking into the matter.

MPA Mansab claimed that the police had registered a case against Khan and his more than 200 men for allegedly attacking him, setting fire to his tenant’s house, a tractor, some wheat and cash. He also claimed he was the owner of the land and that Hakeem Khan was a land grabber and an Afghan refugee.

Sarwar Shaheed Chowk Station House Officer Muhammad Idrees said he was waiting for the forensic report and would take action according to that.

He said it was clear that on May 9 when the incident took place the MPA and his son were not present, while a case had been registered against Khan and his 200 men.

Published in Dawn, May 24th, 2015

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