Tragedy strikes amid festivity

New Year’s Eve aerial firing kills seventh grader, injures 18

KARACHI:

New Year's Eve is usually a cause for celebration, but more often than not, it turns into a nightmare for some in the city and the night between Friday and Saturday was no different. Celebratory aerial firing by the more trigger happy arms owners of the city left a seventh grade student dead and 18 others, among who were women and children, injured.

As soon as the clock struck 12, several locals grabbed ahold of their favourite firearm and unloaded the bullets into the sky. The accompanying fireworks remained another feature and their crackles kept residents awake till the wee hours of Saturday morning.

For several minutes, the sounds of explosions and firing kept coming from different parts of the city. The ban on aerial firing was blatantly ignored by locals who did not let the restriction dampen their spirit of celebration.

Ali Raza, the 12-year-old son of Shahid, was standing at the door of house his situated in North Karachi's Sector 5B-1 in the Khawaja Ajmer Nagri police station jurisdiction when he was shot in the head and suffered serious injury.

He was rushed to a nearby hospital and later to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for emergency medical treatment, but he succumbed to his injuries. Ali Raza was a seventh grade student and the only son of his parents. The father of the slain youth works as a tailor.

Shahid, the grief-stricken father of the teenage boy, said that a cake was being cut in the house on the occasion of New Year's Eve. Meanwhile, Ali Raza was standing at the door of the house when a stray bullet hit him due to which he fell to the ground. He was shifted to a nearby hospital and then to the JPMC where he died during treatment.

He said the x-ray report at the hospital showed that Ali Raza had been shot in the head. The victim's father appealed to citizens to refrain from firing in the air on New Year's Eve. He demanded the police and other law enforcement agencies arrest those involved in his son's "murder" and bring them to justice.

Meanwhile, Muhammad Sarwar, 25, son of Ismail, was shot and injured in Korangi No1 of Nasir Colony. Another wounded by the aerial firing was Atallah, 28, son of Abdul Razzaq. He was standing at Sea View when he was hit by a stray bullet.

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Meanwhile, Chetan, 12, son of Rajesh, was wounded by a stray bullet near the Gurmandir area of Soldier Bazaar. Also injured was 25-year-old Ismat, son of Khudadad Khan, near Azizabad No9 area of Joharabad.

Iqra, the 12-year-old daughter of Abdul Rahim suffered a bullet injury in the North Nazimabad area of Shahra-e-Noor Jahan as did Haris, 14, the son of Hanif-ur-Rehman, in Ghas Mandi of the Ranchorline area in Napier.

Fasiha, the teenage daughter of Yousuf was shot and injured by a stray bullet near the Ayesha Manzil area of Azizabad. Also hit was Muhammad Sultan, 46, the son of Abdul Rehman. He was hit by a stray bullet near Delhi Shahi Kebab Hotel in Azizabad No 3.

Muhammad Akram, the 55-year-old son of Noor Muhammad, was shot and wounded on the Liaquatabad Flyover of the Supermarket area. Another casualty of the New Year's Eve firing was nine-year-old Farooq, the son of Zahir. He happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time near the Perfume Chowk area of Gulistan-e-Jauhar.

Shabir, 25, son of Nasir Muhammad, was wounded in the Masoom Shah Colony area of Mehmoodabad. Also injured by stray bullets were Rizwan, 45, son of Shahid Nabi, near Zainab Market area of Saddar, Abdullah, 30, son of Muhammad Saleem in Madina Colony area of Korangi and Rehman Ahmed, 27, son of Irfan Ahmed, near Gosht Market area of Malir City.

Meanwhile, Naziran, 40, the wife of Juma, was shot and injured when she suffered a stray bullet wound in Bhittaiabad area of Gulistan-e-Jauhar.

Also, Muhammad Akmal, son of Muhammad Iqbal, 18, was hit by a stray bullet near the Burns Road area of the Arambagh police limits, while Imtiaz, 25, son of Farooq, was injured in the Zamanabad area of Landhi. Finally, Faisal was injured by aerial firing near Water Pump Chowrangi of Federal B Area.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 2^nd, 2022.