KARACHI, April 27: An exchange of fire between police and suspected drug peddlers claimed the lives of two boys, aged 11 and 12, in Pak Colony on Wednesday, officials said.They said the police action provoked a serious reaction from the area people, forcing the high-ups to take action against their colleagues.

“Two policemen on a motorbike were on a regular patrol duty in Pak Colony near the Mewa Shah graveyard,” said SP Naveed Khawaja of Liaquatabad Town. “They spotted suspicious pillion-riders and later came to know that they had been snatching cash and valuables from passersby. The policemen asked them to stop but they sped away and fired at the policemen.”

After a brief chase, one of the policemen got off the motorbike and fired at the suspects but instead hit two children playing there, he said.

One of the boys died on the spot and the other died while being treated at the Civil Hospital Karachi, he added.

“The suspected peddlers meanwhile escaped. The victim children have been identified as 12-year-old Adnan Ghani and 11-year-old Imran Shaukat –– both friends and residents of the KMC Flats in the area,” added the Liaquatabad Town SP.

He said both constables –– Muhammad Sohail and Muneer Khan –– had been detained and were being questioned about the incident.

“The area people alleged that the negligence of the policemen led to the incident but there is no such complaint from the victims' families. If the families insist on lodging cases against the constables, the police would move in line with their complaint,” said SP Khawaja.

Even if the families did not want to pursue the case, he said, the police would undertake their own departmental inquiry to ascertain facts and determine those responsible for the tragic incident.

“In either case, we have found severe negligence on part of the policemen, who reacted in an unprofessional manner that led to such incident. It needs to be ascertained whether there was an exchange of fire or it was solely a police action without any provocation,” the Liaquatabad Town SP said.