HYDERABAD: A district and sessions judge in Larkana narrowly escaped an armed attack on his convoy in Khairpur’s Tando Masti area early Saturday, marking an unprecedented assault on a sitting judicial officer in Sindh. One policeman was killed and two others injured when unknown assailants opened fire on the judge’s squad.
The judge, Simkan Hussain Mughal, was returning from Sukkur after attending a reception hosted in honour of the acting Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court. The attackers ambushed the convoy several kilometres past the Tando Masti toll plaza, opening fire from both sides of the road, according to an injured officer.
Head Constable Iqbal Ahmed Malano, one of the injured, recounted the intensity of the ambush, saying the attack was so sudden that they could barely load their weapons. Constable Maqbool Ahmed Shaikh, who was sitting beside Malano, was fatally shot and later buried in Larkana following funeral prayers at the police headquarters.
DIG Sukkur Faisal Abdullah Chachar told the media that police were still unaware of the attackers’ identities and motive but had launched raids in nearby villages, detaining several suspects for questioning. Police sources estimate that between 15 and 25 individuals have been taken into custody.
The Sindh High Court Bar Association condemned the attack, calling it a direct assault on the justice system and the rule of law. The incident has sparked widespread concern over the deteriorating security situation in the Larkana and Sukkur divisions.
