A District West football team traveling from Karachi to Quetta for the Chief Minister Gold Cup Football Championship was robbed at gunpoint near Mastung, with players and other passengers losing mobile phones and cash worth hundreds of thousands of rupees.
According to team manager Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, the 20-member squad was traveling to Quetta when more than a dozen armed men blocked the road with a vehicle between Mastung and Sariab and forced the bus to stop.
The masked attackers held the passengers at gunpoint for around an hour, searched them thoroughly, and took away cash and valuable mobile phones. Several passengers and football players were also assaulted during the robbery.
Bhutto said the robbers later allowed the bus to continue its journey. Around one and a half kilometers from the scene, the passengers reached a Rangers checkpoint and informed the personnel about the incident. However, they were reportedly told that the area did not fall within their jurisdiction.
After reaching Quetta, the team informed the tournament organizers about the robbery and said they had been left without enough money even for breakfast. Bhutto added that the players were deeply shaken by the incident.
The organizers later provided daily allowance money to all the players.
The team also submitted a report to the Balochistan sports minister and requested compensation for the losses suffered by the players.
Meanwhile, Sindh Football Association President Azam said the security situation in Balochistan had discouraged several teams from participating in the tournament.
Speaking to media, he said the Sindh team had not been sent to the event and football clubs in the province had been advised not to travel to Balochistan by bus or train.
He added that the District West team had taken the risk of traveling and faced the consequences. According to him, teams from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had also not participated in the tournament.
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