Thousands bid farewell to Amjad Sabri

Beloved musician buried beside legendary father

KARACHI: Thousands of people came out in Karachi on Thursday to pay their last respects to one of Pakistan’s best known Sufi musicians, who was gunned down a day earlier in a targeted attack.

Emotions ran high and tears flowed free with Karachi’ites from all parts of the city turning up to attend the Namaz-e-Janaza of qawwali maestro Amjad Sabri in Liaquatabad, where shops and businesses had been shut down in reverence for the beloved celebrity.

Amjad’s funeral prayer was led by Ahmed Deewan Masood Chishti, the spiritual heir (Gaddi Nasheen) of famed Sufi saint Baba Farid Shakarganj of Pakpattan.

A sea of mourners thronged the streets at the funeral and followed the ambulance carrying Amjad’s coffin to the cemetery – more than five kilometres away in Paposhnagar. Prominent political leaders, showbiz personalities and social activists also joined the funeral caravan.

The slain Sabri scion was laid to rest beside the grave of his father and famous qawwal Ghulam Farid Sabri inside the compound of Pir Herat Shah Warsi’s shrine in Paposhnagar graveyard.

Amjad’s brother Sarwat Sabri, who flew back from London to attend the funeral, said he never expected he would have to return home to carry his brother’s coffin. “The killers of my brother are worse than animals,” he added.

A large number of police and Rangers personnel were deployed at the funeral site, where roads had already been blocked for traffic over security concerns.

Abdul Sattar, a mourner marching towards Liaquatabad along with his two children, said Amjad had entertained people throughout his life. “It is time for us to pay him tribute and pray for his afterlife.”

Social worker Sarim Burney said Amjad’s murder was “unbelievable”.

Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s Farooq Sattar and Waseem Akhtar also attended the funeral.

Amjad, aged about 45, had left his home and was heading to a television studio when armed motorcyclists pulled up beside his car and fired a volley of bullets at him, killing him on the spot.

The targeted killing triggered a nationwide outpouring of grief with tributes for the famous musician pouring in from all over the world. His murder came just two days after the son of Sindh’s top judge was abducted in broad daylight from an upscale locality.

Investigations

Two high-profile criminal cases within 72 hours have also raised questions about the performance of law enforcement agencies, who along with the paramilitary Rangers, have been involved in the Karachi operation since September 2013.

More than a day after Amjad’s murder and three days after Barrister Ovais Ali Shah’s abduction, investigators have been able to draw the sketches of two of the six suspects believed to be involved in the cases.

“There’s nothing. We have just been able to draw sketches of one suspect each from the cases,” said a senior police officer involved in the investigation of both cases. Even the car used in the kidnapping of the lawyer has yet to be traced.

Another investigator said the same group might be involved in both the cases. “Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent or an Islamic State-inspired militant group might have carried out both the crimes,” he said.

“They want to confirm their existence in Karachi as well as show they can do anything despite the ongoing operations.” A police source told The Express Tribune that some recently arrested al Qaeda militants had disclosed about completing reconnaissance of two high-profile personalities in Karachi for kidnapping. “These crimes can only be committed by highly trained and professional militants,” he added.

Rangers, meanwhile, detained 10 more suspects from Clifton, Defence, Shah Faisal Colony and Baldia Town for their possible involvement in the kidnapping of Barrister Owais.

Law enforcers have taken into custody more than 60 suspects from across the city but have failed to find a single clue in both the cases.

Interestingly, the sketch of one of the suspected killers of Amjad bears similarities with Bollywood superstar Salman Khan. A woman has also moved the Sindh High Court, saying the sketch resembles his son, who has been missing since 2014.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 24^th, 2016.