By Imtiaz Hussain
SUKKUR: A protest camp demanding the recovery of missing children, including Priya Kumari, entered its sixth consecutive day at the Babarloi Bypass in Khairpur, with families, lawyers, political activists and members of civil society continuing their sit-in.
The demonstration, organised by the Priya Kumari Action Committee, called for the recovery of several missing children, including Priya Kumari, Ujala Solangi, Saba Kalhoro, Naveed Lashari, Asifa Mughal and Khushi Mahar.
Addressing the gathering, relatives of the missing children, including Priya Kumari’s father Raja Kumar, Ujala Solangi’s father Shamsuddin Solangi, Asifa Mughal’s father Arshad Ali Mughal, Khushi Mahar’s father Ghulam Hussain Mahar, Ali Asghar Mangrio’s father Zahid Hussain Mangrio, Saba Kalhoro’s brother Asif Kalhoro and Fatima’s father Niaz Hussain, described the disappearances as deeply alarming and urged the authorities to take immediate steps to recover the children.
They said the protest would continue until all the missing children were found and called on the government to establish special investigation teams to trace them and bring those responsible to justice.
Speaking to reporters, Priya Kumari Action Committee chairperson Suhini Paras said five years had passed since Priya Kumari disappeared while serving sabeel on Youm-e-Ashura, but there had been no progress in locating her. She said the committee was appealing to the federal government to intervene and direct the relevant institutions to intensify efforts to recover the missing children.
Sindh Bar Council member Advocate Syed Jaffar Shah and Larkana High Court Bar Association President Athar Abbas Solangi also addressed the gathering. Solangi urged protesters to consider expanding their campaign to Karachi by staging demonstrations outside the Chief Minister’s House and the office of the Inspector General of Police, Sindh.
Later, DSP City Khairpur, the Mukhtiarkar and the Assistant Mukhtiarkar visited the protest camp and held talks with the demonstrators. Officials urged the families to end the sit-in and assured them that efforts were under way to resolve the issue.
The talks ended without an agreement after the families insisted they would continue their protest until the missing children were recovered, saying they wanted concrete action rather than assurances.
