SUKKUR: Heavily armed dacoits, believed to be members of the notorious Sheroo gang, kidnapped seven men, belonging to a joint family, apparently to press police to stop using drones in the ongoing operation against them.

The Shikarpur police had recently claimed a breakthrough in the months-long hunt for Sheroo and his gang members allegedly involved in the Aug 14, 2024 killing of senior journalist Jan Mohammad Mahar. They claimed having killed Sheroo in a drone attack in the Bachal Bhayo village, situated in the riverine area within the Chak taluka of Shikarpur district.

The gang and other sources had claimed that Sheroo died from Hepatitis C. His body was, however, taken into custody by the police soon after his death, purportedly on May 7.

During the May 10-11 night, a heavily armed gang riding several vehicles struck Sukhiyo Malik village, stormed their way into a house located in front of the area`s police station and took away eight persons sleeping inside.

Among the victims was llahi Bakhsh Malik, who later claimed that the kidnappers dropped him midway and asked him to tell the police to stop using drones in the ongoing anti-dacoit operation in this area. He said the gang also asked him to ensure that residents of the village stage demonstrations on Sukkur-Shikarpur section of the highway to demand peaceful negotiations with the gang for the safe recovery of the hostages.

Malik named those who were taken away by the gang as Abdul Aziz, Shafi Mohammad, Farman, Ahsan, Suleman, Abdul Majeed and Noor Mohammad all members of a joint family.

The SHO of the Bachal Bhayo police station, along with his team rushed to the village to collect information about the kidnapping. He said that a strong contingent of police had been sent into the specified area to recover the hostages and arrest the gangsters.

The gang later uploaded a video showing the hostages begging for help and asking the Shikarpur SSP to accept the gang`s demands for their safe release.

Meanwhile, according to a handout, Law Minister Zia UI Hassan Lanjar has taken serious notice of the incident and asked the Shikarpur SSP for a complete report on the entire episode. He told the SSP to apprise him of the police action taken so far in this regard.

`A proactive and capable police team should be tasked with the safe recovery of the abductees,` he directed the SSP.

The minister said that early arrest of the gangsters involved in the kidnapping should be ensured by availing technological and intelligence support.

He said he must be kept informed about progress of the police action.