By Imtiaz Hussain
SUKKUR: A tribal jirga held at the Circuit House in Sukkur on Saturday concluded a rare and sweeping attempt to close a four-decade-old cycle of violence between seven tribes, formally resolving dozens of murder cases and imposing collective fines running into hundreds of millions of rupees.
The gathering, chaired by Sardar Ali Gohar Khan Mahar and attended by senior tribal elders and political figures, brought together representatives of the Shar, Kosh, Tarat, Selra, Machhi, Bhutta and Dhondho communities. Over five days of discussions, elders reviewed testimonies, cross-checked claims and examined long-standing accusations linked to violence that had claimed more than a hundred lives in total.
By the end of the proceedings, the jirga recorded 84 confirmed killings and 79 injuries among the feuding sides and assigned compensation accordingly. In several instances, responsibility for specific killings was formally attributed to particular groups, with financial penalties imposed to settle blood claims and related grievances. The total fines announced amounted to approximately Rs305.5 million, to be paid in instalments under supervision at the SSP Ghotki office.
Security was tightened around the Circuit House during the meetings, with separate arrangements for participants and observers as surrendered suspects were also presented before the assembly as part of reconciliation efforts. Officials said the feud had originally stemmed from disputes over state land in the riverine belt, which gradually escalated into repeated cycles of retaliatory killings.
Alongside compensation orders, the jirga also formed a committee to assess property and livestock losses, and warned that any future act of violence would be treated as a criminal offence, carrying an additional fine and no longer dealt with under tribal mediation.
