Sindh Taraqi Pasand Party (STP) vice-chairperson Altaf Jiskani was fatally shot in Tando Allahyar district on Wednesday. He was declared dead a few hours later at Liaquat University Hospital, Hyderabad.
While the police are yet to register the FIR, law enforcement sources claim the murder was likely to have been motivated by a personal dispute.
Jiskani sustained three gunshot wounds to his head and chest, with a police source stating he appeared to be dead when he was being shifted from Tando Allahyar to Hyderabad.
STP chairperson Dr Qadir Magsi and hundreds of workers arrived at the hospital upon hearing of the incident, while protests arose in several districts.
"He was a central leader of the party who had the courage to stare in the eyes of Sindh's enemies," said Dr Magsi, talking to the media in the hospital. He expressed the belief that Jiskani was kidnapped by his assailants before he was shot dead.
Jiskani's body was found on the rear seat of his car, which was discovered fallen by the steep roadside decline along Keerio distributary on Nasarpur Bypass road. The local media reported that armed assailants riding a motorcycle appeared to have fired gunshots at him.
However, the fact that he was found on the rear seat suggested that someone not only took him there but also pushed his car dozens of feet off the road.
Magsi accused local Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Aslam Rind of being involved in the murder. He further alleged that Rind recently shot and injured himself and accused Jiskani's brothers, Asad and Zeeshan, of attempting to kill him. The two brothers were arrested and sent to jail on judicial remand.
Magsi claimed that when the district police raided Rind's residence after Jiskani's murder, they found that the PTI leader and his family had left town, selling their properties as well.
Asking the police to arrest Rind and his accomplices, the STP chairperson appealed to the party's supporters to observe a peaceful shutter-down strike in the province on Thursday.
Enraged STP workers resorted to aerial firing in Tando Allahyar after the incident, while traders shut down the markets.
SSP Rukhsar Ahmed Khuwarh stated that seven suspects had been detained for interrogation in connection with the incident, but did not disclose their identities.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 19th, 2020.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ