Karachi (PTI): A fisherman in Pakistan's Karachi city became a millionaire overnight after auctioning a haul of rare fish which has many medicinal properties.

Haji Baloch, who lives in the impoverished Ibrahim Hyderi fishing village, and his workers caught the fish known as golden fish or "Sowa" in the local dialect from the Arabian Sea on Monday.

"The entire catch was sold for some 70 million rupees at the Karachi harbour on Friday morning when fishermen auctioned off their catch," Mubarak Khan of the Pakistan Fishermen Folk Forum said.

The Sowa fish is considered priceless and rare since substances from its belly are said to have great healing and medicinal properties. A thread-like substance from the fish is also used in surgical procedures.

"One fish fetches around 7 million rupees in the auction," Baloch said.
The fish, which often weighs between 20 to 40 kgs and can grow up to 1.5 meters, is much sought after in East Asian countries.

More importantly, the Sowa also holds cultural and traditional significance, finding its use in traditional medicines and local cuisine.

"We were fishing in the open sea of Karachi...when we came across this huge cache of golden fish, and it was a windfall for us," he said.

Haji said he would share the money with his crew of seven people.

The fish comes near the coast only during breeding season.

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Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court has instructed the Union Home Ministry to decide on a petition regarding Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's Indian citizenship. The Bench, led by Justice Attau Rahman Masoodi and Justice Subhash Vidyarthi, set a deadline of December 19, 2024, for the government to update the Court on the matter.

The petition, filed by S Vignesh Shishir, requests a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into allegations that Rahul Gandhi holds British citizenship. Shishir claims that evidence, including confidential emails shared by VSS Sarma, suggests Gandhi may be a British citizen. However, due to UK data protection laws, the British government has not disclosed full details without Gandhi's consent.

During the November 25 hearing, Deputy Solicitor General SB Pandey informed the Court that the Home Ministry is reviewing the representation. The Court directed the government to report on the status of the petition by the next hearing on December 19.

A similar petition challenging Rahul Gandhi's citizenship is pending before the Delhi High Court, where the matter will be heard after the Allahabad High Court's proceedings.