Karachi: Sajan Malookani, a 21-year-old law student at Sindh University, was killed in Rahimyar Khan, Punjab, on October 6, 2024. He was abducted along with his two cousins, Shaukat Malookani and Naeem, by security agencies on September 1, 2023, from Naseem Nagar Chowk, Hyderabad, in front of the student. The abduction occurred in a white VIGO without a registration number.
The Rise News spoke to Darya Khan Malookani, Sajan’s brother, who said that the family bad been promised their son would return soon, but their efforts to find him yielded no results.
On September 8, the court ordered that Sajan be produced at any cost. Fifteen days later, the family was informed that Sajan had been killed in an encounter in Rahimyar Khan.
In July of this year, the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) claimed that Shaukat and Naeem were involved in alleged terrorist activities, while Sajan had fled. After CTD’s press conference, the family grew increasingly worried about Sajan, fearing he might have been harmed.
Meanwhile, the Sindh Sujaag Forum (SSF) posted a statement on Facebook, claiming that the allegations made by CTD against Shaukat and Naeem were baseless. SSF argued that the security agencies had abducted them and subsequently fabricated charges. “We are concerned about Sajan, who might have been harmed. Therefore, he must be produced before the court,” said Sarang Joyo, President of SSF in July 2024.
A year after the abduction, the family filed a petition in court. The court questioned the family about the delay in filing the case. In their petition, the family explained that local influential figures: “Nek Mards of locality each one Sain Zain Shah (President of Sindh Unity Party). Bahadur Dahari, MPA (Ghulam Mustafa Shah and Ghulam Qadir MPA of PPP, but they kept on hopes.”
After the petition was filed, on September 28, 2024, the police submitted a report to the court, alleging that Sajan was connected to the banned organization Sindh Revolutionary Army (SRA) and involved in terrorist activities. When the court inquired about his whereabouts, the police claimed that he had fled.
The lawyer representing the victim’s family, Muhib Azad, questioned the police report and asked the court how Sajan could have fled if influential local politicians had repeatedly assured the family that he would return soon. He also pointed out that there were two witnesses present when Sajan was abducted.
Azad criticized the state’s response, asking what could be expected when the court had specifically instructed the police and agencies to produce the missing person. “Instead of producing him, they gave the family his dead body,” he said. He further accused the state of adopting a new strategy of killing missing persons in a different province, as in Sajan’s case, where he was killed in Punjab, making it more difficult for poorer families to pursue justice in court.
Muhib recalled case in which an abducted person was killed by the agencies, and the grieving mother withdrew her case, saying that she had no hope of receiving justice. Instead, she placed her faith in God’s judgment, believing that true justice would come from him.
On the other hand, Darya said that his brother sacrificed his life for the people of Sindh. He expressed his lack of faith in the judiciary, believing it cannot deliver justice to his family. “If they want, they should release all missing persons,” Darya stated.
Joyo also criticized the situation, pointing out that civil society in Sindh, especially, has remained silent on hard issues like enforced disappearances. “Their interests would be risked if they raised their voices,” he said. Joyo added that only a few people in the province continue to speak out against enforced disappearances. The state has begun killing Sindhis to stifle political activism.
