Shikarpur: Former Member of Provincial Assembly (MPA) Sardar Mir Ghalib Khan Domki along with his wife and grandson were injured in a targeted attack by a heavily armed group on the national highway near Rustam town of Shikarpur district on Sunday evening.
The victims, who were injured by flying glass fragments during the firing, were rushed to a nearby hospital where their condition is said to be stable. Preliminary medical examination confirmed that he did not suffer from bullet injuries.
Sardar Domki’s two bodyguards, Salar and Meher, also lost their lives in the attack, while another, identified as Murad Khan Domki, sustained serious injuries and is currently fighting for his life.
According to the police and onlookers, the attack took place when Sardar Domki was traveling from Sukkur with his wife and grandson in a Vigo vehicle to Bakhshapur city in Kundhkot-Kashmore district. When their vehicle passed through Rustam city, the assailants stopped on the side of the road and signaled the driver to stop. The driver, sensing an impending danger, accelerated the vehicle. In response, the attackers opened fire on the vehicle.
The bodyguards, who were traveling in a vehicle behind Vigo, quickly retaliated, leading to a gun battle. Three attackers were killed in the exchange of fire. However, two guards of Sardar Domki were killed in this encounter.
The assailants, identified by locals as members of a notorious dacoit gang, fled the scene after the exchange of fire, allegedly taking with them the bodies of their fallen gang members and the injured. Eyewitnesses claimed that the gangsters fled in several vehicles towards the riverside area of Shikarpur.
Local sources and police officers have suggested that the assailants were part of a well-known dacoit gang and the gang leader Mir Nadir Mirani is among the alleged dead. However, these claims are yet to be independently verified.
Law enforcement agencies responded swiftly to the attack, deploying a large contingent of personnel from various police stations to secure the area. Police also launched a search operation in the Riverine area, which is believed to be the hideout of the gang, in a bid to nab the rest of the attackers.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and Inspector General of Police Ghulam Nabi Memon have taken notice of the incident. The Chief Minister and IGP have directed Shikarpur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Shahzeb Chachar to provide a detailed report on the attack and its aftermath.
Sardar Mir Ghalib Khan Domki, an important political figure of the region, has had a long association with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). However, in the 2018 general elections, he contested the Sindh Assembly seat on a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) ticket but was unsuccessful.
