MANSEHRA: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl leader Mufti Kifayatullah has warned that he will sue Mansehra district police officer Sadiq Baloch for defamation over the allegation of harbouring a suspected child abuser.

`The DPO is supposed to protect the people`s honour and dignity but instead, he disgraced me by ordering the registration of a fabricated FIR against me,` he told a presser outside the DPO offices here on Wednesday.

Mr Kifayatullah was booked by the police last month for harbouring cleric Qari Shamsuddin, who had sexually assaulted a 10-year-old student of his seminary on Dec 24 last year. A local court has granted him bail in the case until Feb 21.

`Pm holding this news conference in protest. I helped the police in this high-profile assault case by ensuring the surrender of the suspect but instead of appreciating my initiative, the police booked me for harbouring him,` he said.

The JUI-F leader warned that he would lead an agitation against the police if the false charges against him were not with-drawn immediately.

He said he had complete confidence in judiciary and would never break the law.

ACCIDENT CLAIMS LIFE: A car plunged into a deep ravine in Dubair area of Lower Kohistan on Wednesday killing a man and injuring three.

`A police team shifted the injured to a nearby hospital, where one of them succumbed to the injuries,` district police officer of Lower Kohistan Salman Khan told reporters. The accident occurred as the driver lost the car`s control while negotiating a sharp turn on the way from Rawalpindi to Hunza area of Gilgit-Baltistan.

The police said Amjad Ali of Kareemabad, Hunza, succumbed to injuries before reaching a local hospital, while the doctors referred the others, including Amin Khan, Naeem Abbas and Amir Ahmad, all residents of Kareemabad, to the Ayub Medical Complex, Abbottabad, due to critical condition.

Also in the day, gunmen injured resident Naseebullah In Barian area of Oghi tehsil over a land dispute. The condition of the injured admitted to the Oghi tehsil headquarters hospital was stated to be critical.

The police registered an FIR and began search for the gunmen.

Meanwhile, the police arrested Mohammad Tauseef after a local court cancelled his pre-arrest bail in a firing case.

Mohammad Tauseef and his brother, Mohammad Jahangir, had allegedly fired gunshots at Mohammad Inamullah causing him serious injuries.