CM Murad Ali Shah vows justice for victims of police firing

Sindh’s chief minister on Saturday visited Syed Raza Imam, who was injured in police firing near the Cantt Station, and six-year-old Hasnain from Larkana, whose face and scalp were bitten off by a pack of stray dogs.

Imam told CM Syed Murad Ali Shah that he lived in Canada and had come back home last year. “Now I’ll return to Canada,” he said.

Listening to this the chief executive told the injured man to enjoy his life in the city, assuring him that no more bad things will happen to him.

“This was an unfortunate incident,” the CM said referring to Friday’s shooting by the police that killed 40-year-old Nabil Hoodbhoy on the spot and injured his friend Imam. Shah said the incident caused him serious shock.

Imam said he and Hoodbhoy were class fellows at the Karachi Grammar School, following which he (Imam) moved to Canada but studied in the US. “We were friends since childhood and used to meet regularly.”

The CM said he has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident and the policemen who had fired the shots and those in the police mobile have been arrested. “It is our responsibility to provide you justice.”

The doctor providing medical treatment to Imam at the Aga Khan University Hospital told the chief executive that the patient is in a stable condition and will most probably be discharged within the next 24 hours.

A day earlier, three policemen were arrested and a case under the Anti-Terrorism Act registered against them following the killing of businessman Hoodbhoy and injuries to his friend Imam.

The incident took place at around 3:15am on Fatima Jinnah Road when the two friends were travelling in a white car. The Sindh police chief took notice of the incident and sought a detailed report from South Zone DIG Sharjil Kharal, ordering stern action against the cops involved.

According to DIG Kharal, three policemen of the Gizri police station — Sub-Inspector Abdul Ghaffar, Head Constable Aftab and Constable Muhammad Ali — were arrested, as District South SSP Sheraz Nazeer, the SSP investigation and the Frere DSP initiated an inquiry into the incident.

The investigators are also looking for CCTV footage to ascertain the actual facts behind the incident. The deceased lived in the Hatim Ali Road area while the injured lived in the Cantt Station area. Hasnain’s state

During his visit to the National Institute of Child Health (NICH), CM Shah was briefed about the condition of Hasnain and the efforts of the doctors by NICH Director Dr Jamal Raza.

The doctor said the minor’s condition is precarious and the 10-member medical board the chief executive constituted under NICH paediatric surgeon Dr Jamshed Akhtar is making all-out efforts to save the child’s life.

The CM told the director and the child’s father, Ghulam Hussain, that he wants to send the child to any hospital within Pakistan or abroad for saving his life. But Dr Raza said Hasnain’s condition is not yet stable enough to move him abroad.

Hussain thanked Shah for his support. “I am thankful to you for your personal care. You have done the best at your level. I am satisfied with the efforts of the doctors.”

The chief executive directed the NICH director to update him every day about the condition of the child as well as to exercise extraordinary care in the minor’s case.

A day earlier, on the recommendations of a 10-member special medical board, paediatric and maxillofacial surgeons from different public and private hospitals performed an extensive surgery on Hasnain at the NICH and removed dead and infected skin from his face.

In a statement released to the media, Dr Raza said they planned to carry out regular dressings as well as combating the infection present. “This will take a few weeks, as we will wait for the healthy tissue to grow for any subsequent grafting surgeries.”

The child had remained conscious and feeding had been started with a nasogastric tube, he said, adding that painkillers were extensively being used to handle significant pain the patient was suffering. He said that on Thursday, the special medical board members had examined the condition of the child and planned a major surgery to remove the infected skin and tissues from the face and head of the child.

A new feeding tube was also inserted in his body to feed him as he would be unable to eat himself for weeks or even months ahead, added the doctor.

Hasnain had attracted national and international attraction after he was mauled by stray dogs, which had bitten off most of his face, cheeks, nose, ears, eyelids and part of his scalp. The boy was shifted to the NICH, where he has been undergoing treatment since then.