GDA slams police raid on leader’s house in Defence

The residence of Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) leader Ghulam Murtaza Jatoi in the Defence area was raided by police.

The raid, conducted on the night between Tuesday and Wednesday, resulted in no arrest. Allegations surfaced as Jatoi’s wife claimed that policemen forcibly entered the house by breaking down doors, violating the sanctity of their home.

A significant contingent of Sindh police, accompanied by the Clifton Division police, carried out the raid on former federal minister Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi’s residence in Defence, thoroughly searching the premises.

The police entered Jatoi House and conducted a thorough search despite the presence of only women in the house at the time of the raid. Despite informing the police, the women said the police did not heed their requests.

Mrs Jatoi asserted that the officers mishandled household items, mistreated and harassed women and children. She further alleged that they were being targeted for not aligning with the Pakistan Peoples Party, claiming harassment through falsified cases.

She appealed to the chief justice of Pakistan to intervene and address what she termed as state terrorism in Sindh. Notably, earlier, the GDA had accused the police of raiding Jatoi’s residences in Nawabshah and Naushahro Feroze on the orders of the PPP government. Leaders of the Grand Democratic Alliance denounced the police raid on Jatoi’s residence as a violation of home sanctity and condemned it as an extremely cowardly act by the Sindh government.

In a joint statement issued on Wednesday, GDA leaders, including Dr Safdar Abbasi, Zain Shah, Ayaz Latif Palijo, Dr Fahmida Mirza, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza, Irfanullah Khan Marwat, Hasnain Mirza, and Muzaffar Brohi, criticized the Sindh government, alleging it to be a result of severe rigging.

They called on the government to refrain from employing “despicable” tactics against political opponents, warning of potential widespread protests across the province to reclaim citizens’ rights.

The leaders attributed the police action against the Jatoi family to their electoral competition, stating that transparent and impartial elections would have resulted in the defeat of the incumbent home minister and other associates of the Asif Ali Zardari.