Boy looted at gunpoint
CHITRAL, Dec 20: A boy was looted at gunpoint near Hayatabad police station in the provincial capital where he had gone for appearing in a test for recruitment in Pak Army.
Narrating his woes to Dawn here on Monday, Rashid Ali from Oveer village of upper Chitral said after reaching Peshawar he was going to Hayatabad to stay with his cousin when two persons stopped him near police station and asked him to hand over whatever he had.
With tears in his eyes, the boy said they snatched his bag carrying his credentials and clothes and then carried out his body search and took away Rs6,000 and mobile phone. “I besought them to return my NIC and certificates but they did not listen and asked me to leave the place”, he said.
The boy suspected the robbers from their looks as policemen in plainclothes. He said he returned to Chitral without appearing in the test as NIC and educational certificates were required in the Army recruitment centre. —Correspondent
Several suspects held
LAKKI MARWAT, Dec 20: Police have arrested several suspects and outlaws during a search operation in different parts of the district, claimed an official on Monday.
The official said that police backed by personnel of Elite Force and Anti-Terror Squad launched the search in different areas to tighten noose against the suspected militants and hardened criminals and ensure their arrest.
“Under the command of DPO Gul Wali Khan the law enforcers also backed by armoured personnel carrier vehicles raided the hideouts of anti-law elements in different localities and arrested 40 suspected elements and 57 wanted criminals”, the official maintained.
The official revealed that the arrested outlaws were wanted in kidnapping, murder and other cases of heinous nature. Besides, police also apprehended 8 gamblers and several drug traffickers.
He said the law enforcers also recovered three Kalashnikovs, three Kalakovs, 17 pistols, 16 shotguns, five rifles, 1,372 bullets, 5,000 grams hashish and 71 grams heroin. —Correspondent
Sold woman recovered
MANSHERA, Dec 20: Police have recovered a woman who was sold by her husband and arrested two culprits from Khatai area of Oghi, it was learnt.
Noorun Nisa, mother of three daughters, was missing from her house in Shamlai area of Battagram for last one week and her husband Mohammad Zakir alias Chaudhry had told her parents she had gone somewhere without his consent.
Mian Gul, the father of the woman on suspicion lodged FIR with Shamlai police stating his son-in-law had killed his daughter.
Police arrested Mohammad Zakir, who during interrogation revealed that he had sold Noorun Nisa to Zardar for Rs100,000.
A police party raided Khatai area and recovered the woman and also arrested Zardar. The arrested persons were members of an inter-provincial gang of women smugglers, police said. —Correspondent
KMU, UK varsity ink MoU
PESHAWAR, Dec 20: The Khyber Medical University (KMU) and the University of Glasgow UK have signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate in future.
The MoU was signed by Prof Anna Dominiczak, Head of College of Medicine, Veterinary and Life Sciences and KMU vice chancellor Prof Dr Mohammad Hafizullah.
Dr Hafizullah, and Prof Dr Shad Mohammad, Director Academics and Admissions, KMU, are on a two day visit to University of Glasgow.
The main purpose of their visit is to meet the KMU students, their supervisors and officials of the university and to address the problems faced by the students. It is worth mentioning that KMU has sent 19 scholars to UK for PhD in various disciplines, mostly in basic medical sciences. Out of 19 scholars 14 have been placed in University of Glasgow.
VC KMU thanked the Glasgow University for accommodating scholars of KMU. Prof Dominiczak assured all possible help to KMU and its students. —APP
Journalists body polls
SWABI, Dec 20: Mohammad Farooq and Mohammad Arif Sarhadi were elected as president and general secretary of the Gandhara Union of Journalists (GUJ), respectively on Monday.
Earlier, the former cabinet of the GUJ was dissolved before the election. The other elected members were: Amjid Ali vice-president, Rangaz Khan joint secretary and Muqaddam Khan as finance secretary.
Newly elected president and general secretary of the GUJ vowed to work for strengthening professionalism in the field of journalism. “We would establish the Swabi press club very soon,” said Mr Farooq. —Correspondent
PPP workers
PESHAWAR, Dec 20: PPP Khyber Pakhtunkhwa president Syed Zahir Ali Shah has said his party believes in service of the people and assured the party workers that all possible steps will be taken for solution to their problems.
This he said while speaking at an open kachehri at People’s Secretariat here on Monday. Workers’ delegations from Chitral and Gadoon apprised him of their problems.
Provincial Minister Saleem Khan, MNA Mehrunnisa, Begum Shehzada Suleman, former town nazim Shaukat Ali and other party leaders were also present.
Mr Shah said he had regular contacts with party workers and would soon visit Chitral to solve problems being faced by the workers. He claimed the party would clean sweep the next elections. —Bureau Report
JI prepares for elections
TIMERGARA, Dec 20: The JI Lower Dir on Monday claimed that it would sweep the next general elections both in Upper and Lower Dir as it had done in 2002.
Addressing a public gathering at Katan Dushkhel the candidate of the JI for NA-34 seat and former district council chairman Sahibzada Yaqub Khan said the party graph had been improving with each passing day.
He said people from different parties had been joining the JI for its ‘firm stand’ on national, regional and international issues. “The JI, though boycotted the last general election, yet it wants the government to complete its term without any interference,” said Sahibzada Yaqub. —Correspondent