Passenger, cop killed in tribal clash

Published October 25, 2002

SUKKUR, Oct 24: A police constable and a passenger of a Sehwan-bound train were killed in a clash between Jatoi and Maher tribesmen near Habibkot here on Thursday.

The passenger, Tanvir Ahmad, resident of Faisalabad, was injured when a stray bullet hit him near the Habibkot Railway Station. He was shifted to a hospital in Shikarpur where he died.

The police constable of the Chak police station, Jamaluddin Maher, was on his way to Aqil village when gunmen of the Jatoi tribe kidnapped him near Habibkot. His body was later found at a deserted place in the village.

After the incident, the train engineers refused to operate the trains till protection was provided to them and the passengers. According to them, this was the second incident of firing on a train during a week time.

The Railways is running special trains for Sehwan to facilitate passengers of Punjab to attend the Urs of Shahbaz Qalander.

It may be recalled the Jatois and the Mahers are at war for the last two years and dozens of people have been killed in the area during attacks and counter attacks in Trut Jatoi village, situated near the railway track.

Our Shikarpur Correspondent adds: An emergency meeting was held at the DPO office here Thursday evening to review the law and order situation created by the ongoing Mehar-Jatoi tribal dispute in Shikarpur district.

The district Nazim, Mohammad Arif Khan Mehar, the DIGP, Sukkur region, Syed Mushtaq Shah, the DPO, Abdul Khaliq Shaikh, and other influential people of Mehar and Jatoi tribes attended the meeting and discussed the ways and means to overcome the tribal clashes in the district.

The participants decided to arrange meetings of the chiefs of both the tribes to settle the dispute.

The meeting also decided to launch police operation against those who were found involved in creating lawlessness.

According to reports, about 160 persons have been killed in the Mehar-Jatoi dispute which started over a piece of agricultural land some eleven years ago.

QUOTA: The Sindh government has sanctioned a quota in appointment in the education department for children of government servants who died during their service period.

This was announced by the EDO, education, Sukkur, Prof Rafia Naz Pathan.