An FIR has been filed at the Gulshan-i-Iqbal Police Station against eight suspects following an incident of gunfire and hostage-taking at a local call center. The case, registered a day ago, includes charges under multiple sections of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), such as rioting (147, 148, 149), assault (337A), wrongful confinement (342), and assault on a woman (354). A charge under Section 25 of the Sindh Arms Act 2013 for the use of a firearm has also been added.
Details of the Incident
According to the FIR, the incident began after workers at the call center took the complainant’s daughter, who is an employee there, hostage. The complainant stated that the branch manager had been harassing his daughter for three years, a matter that had been brought to the attention of the manager by the daughter’s brother and nephew.
On the day of the incident, the manager reportedly taunted the complainant’s nephew over the phone, challenging him to “do whatever you want.” In response, the complainant, his sister, and nephews went to the office at 9 PM and found the doors locked, with the daughter held hostage inside.
Gunfire and Police Response
The complainant alleged that after they broke down the door and entered, the branch manager hurled abuses, and another person drew a gun and fired shots. The complainant’s nephew returned fire, and the office guard also joined in.
Someone on the police helpline reported the gunshots, and police arrived on the scene shortly after. They arrested five people for the firing and detained three others for causing the incident. The police also seized weapons and ammunition from the suspects.
This incident is reminiscent of other recent crimes in Karachi, such as the arrest of a young man in DHA in February. He had shot and wounded two police officers while resisting arrest in a kidnapping-for-ransom case.
