Armed outlaws in Pakistan’s Punjab province kidnapped three Hindus and issued an ultimatum, demanding the release of their accomplices from police custody.
The incident took place in the Bhong area of ​​Rahim Yar Khan district, around 400 kilometers southwest of Lahore, on Wednesday.
The victims, identified as Shaman, Shameer, and Sajan, were near the Chowk Sawetra Basic Health Unit (BHU) in Bhong when five armed dacoits abducted them at gunpoint and took them to the Katcha riverine area, a region notorious for criminal activity.
In a video released later by the outlaws’ ringleader Ashiq Korai, the gang threatened Ahmedpur Lama police station officer Rana Ramzan, warning that if Korai’s 10 family members were not freed, the kidnapped youths would be killed.
The gang also threatened to attack the police. The video showed the abducted Hindus in chains, pleading for their release.
The incident shows the ongoing lawlessness in the Katcha area, a riverine belt spanning parts of southern Punjab and Sindh provinces. Despite multiple operations, authorities have struggled to curb the power of these criminal gangs, who frequently engage in kidnappings for ransom and target minority Hindu communities to pressure authorities into compliance.
Last year, the region witnessed a deadly attack on police, with 12 officers killed and seven injured when dacoits ambushed two police vehicles in the same district.