Team Travelling for Football Match in Quetta Robbed by Bandits; Mobile Phones and Cash Snatched From 20 Players

QUETTA (Daily Qudrat) — Armed bandits allegedly carried out looting for an hour between Mastung and Saryab from all passengers aboard a bus, including the District West football team travelling from Karachi to Quetta to participate in the ongoing Chief Minister Gold Cup Football Tournament, as a result of which mobile phones and cash worth millions of rupees were snatched from the players and other passengers.

According to District West football team manager Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, the 20-member Karachi West team was travelling to Quetta to participate in the Chief Minister Gold Cup Football Championship when armed men stopped the bus near Mastung by parking a vehicle in front of it. According to him, more than a dozen armed men had their faces covered with masks and, at gunpoint with modern weapons, held the passengers aboard the bus hostage and conducted a search for an hour.

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto said that the alleged bandits, besides snatching precious mobile phones and cash from the passengers and players, also subjected some individuals to violence. After the looting, the armed men allowed the bus to proceed, after which the team reached Quetta. He stated that after reaching Quetta, the tournament organisers were informed about the incident and told that the players did not even have money left for breakfast. According to him, after the incident the players are in a state of severe fear, upon which the tournament organisers provided daily expenses to all the players.

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto further stated that a report of the incident has also been presented to the Balochistan Minister for Sports, and a demand has been made that the financial loss suffered by the players during the looting should be compensated and teams should be provided protection.

Meanwhile, Sindh Football Association president Azam, expressing concern over the incident that occurred with the District West team, said that according to him, due to the security situation in Balochistan, the Sindh team was also not sent to participate in the tournament, and Sindh clubs were instructed to avoid travelling by bus or train. He said that in this event, besides Sindh, teams from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa also did not participate.

After the incident, football circles have demanded that travel protection be provided to players and sports teams so that players participating in national-level sports competitions can continue their activities without fear or danger.