HYDERABAD:
The cruel tribal and communal animosities claimed six more lives on Monday besides leaving half a dozen men and women injured. The incidents occurred in Rustam, Shikarpur and Sujawal Junejo, Kambar-Shahdadkot.
Two groups of the Mahar caste reportedly exchanged fire at the riverside village of Aamil in Rustam. Rahib, Sarwar and Aitbar, all from the Mahar caste, were killed during the gunfight, while two men and four women suffered gunshot wounds.
Aitbar belonged to the Ghaus Bux Gadani Mahar group, while Rahib and Kalu were from the Kalu Mahar group. Locals told the police that due to the firing between both sides, the bodies remained lying on the ground for two to three hours. Later, police sent contingents to stop the clash and shift the bodies to Ghulam Shah taluka hospital.
The police also remained present during Namaz-e-Janaza and the burial to prevent a repeat of the bloodshed. However, no suspect was arrested nor was the police able to register an FIR that night. The injured were taken to Sukkur.
Elsewhere, a fight between two groups of the Jatoi caste in Sujawal Junejo left Hakim Jatoi and two bystanders, Zameer Tunio and Manzoor Korai, 50, dead. Kambar-Shahdadkot police said the slain men were sitting in their guest house when gunmen on motorcycles shot them with automatic rifles.
Saeed Jatoi was seriously injured in the assault. The attackers managed to escape after the murders. The crime scene is located near Ghulam Rasool Korai village, along the highway. The bodies were shifted to Meeru Khan Civil Hospital for autopsy. In the afternoon, the FIR of the incident could not be registered.
Meanwhile, the Shikarpur police claimed to have killed one suspected bandit and injured two others in an encounter on Jaganh Link Road in the limits of New Faujdari police station. Police identified the slain suspect as Khanu Sundrani. The injured suspects fled the scene. There are also reports that Khanu was shot allegedly by his own accomplices.
