Cleric shot dead in Karachi's Gulistan-e-Jauhar

A member of the Pakistan Ulema Association and the central leader of the Sunni Ulema Council was shot dead by unknown suspects in a reported ambush in the port city's Gulistan-e-Jauhar area on Tuesday.

Maulana Abdul Qayyum Sufi reached his home after offering Fajr prayers where two unidentified assailants on a motorcycle shot and killed him. The cleric received a fatal bullet wound to the head and the suspects soon fled the scene.

According to police officials, Rangers and law enforcement agencies reached the spot and the crime scene unit was summoned to collect evidence. The body of the deceased was taken to Jinnah Hospital for post-mortem.

Immediately after the incident, the central leadership of the Pakistan Ulema Association and Sunni Ulema Council, madrassa students and residents of the area reached the spot in large numbers and started protesting by blocking the road.

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Talking to media personnel, Maulana Qaim Ali Qadri, a member of the coordination committee, said that Sufi was the president of the organization and many institutions were run by him.

He added that law enforcement agencies were investigating the incident and many cameras were installed in the area, the videos of which were being obtained.

He furthered that Mufti Muneebur Rehman and the leadership of Karachi will be informed about the action plan.

The deceased was a father of four.