25 booked for ‘vandalising’ upscale restaurant on Tipu Sultan Road in Karachi
Pakistan
Karachi police on Saturday registered a case against 20 to 25 unidentified people for vandalising an upscale restaurant on Tipu Sultan Road a day earlier and injuring one of its employees.
A video had surfaced online yesterday in which a mob can be seen outside the restaurant named Angeethi. At one point, one of the men throws a chair into the glass facade of the establishment, causing it to shatter.
According to SSP East Zubair Nazeer Shaikh, the employees of the restaurant were playing cricket nearby when two passersby were hit by their ball, resulting in a scuffle. During the altercation, the restaurant employees had allegedly roughed up the passersby.
“They (passersby) went back and brought around 20-25 men armed with sticks who attacked the restaurant, vandalised it, and injured one employee before fleeing away,” he said.
SSP Shaikh said the restaurant administration did not want to pursue the case. “Therefore, the police have registered an FIR (first information report) on behalf of the state against two dozen persons over charges of riot,” he added.
The police officer said efforts were being made to arrest the suspects.
Meanwhile, the restaurant’s part-owner Moshin Shafiq Saigal told Dawn.com that on Thursday his employees were playing cricket on Tipu Sultan Road when two boys on a bike tried to pick a fight with them.
“They hit my employees with a bat first,” he alleged. “Then only my employees retaliated and beat them a lot”.
Saigal said the next day the elders of the two boys visited the restaurant and met the manager. “Talks were taking place inside and the manager was explaining to them his version of the events. They were apologising when a mob of at least 40-50 people gathered outside and attacked the restaurant with hammers, chains and sticks.”
“They caused a lot of damage to the restaurant,” he added. “We eventually reached a compromise with the other party as they hail from rural areas and we are businessmen and do not want to involve ourselves in fights.”
The restaurant has since resumed its operations, the owner said.
According to the FIR, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Azam Mirza lodged a complaint with Ferozabad Police Station under Sections 147 (punishment for rioting), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees), 337-A (i) (Shajjah) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
It quoted complainant ASI Mirza as saying that he was patrolling in the area with his squad a little after midnight when they saw around 20-25 persons vandalising Angeethi restaurant, beating the waiters inside with sticks, and using abusive language.
The report said that upon seeing the police, the suspects escaped, but one of them dropped their Covid vaccine card through which he was identified as Faheem Nadeem.
