Political activist found dead at her apartment

Naree Tehreek Organiser Murk Pirzado’s father says hard to believe she committed suicide

HYDRABAD:

A nationalist political activist employed at a bank was found dead at her apartment in Naseem Shopping Mall in Qasimabad, Hyderabad, on Wednesday.

The Naseem Nagar police said though the cause of death apparently seemed to be suicide because the body of 32 years old Murk Jan Pirzado was hanging from the ceiling fan, it will be early to rule out murder at this stage.

Pirzado was the organiser of Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz's Naree Tehreek. The in charge Naseem Nagar police check post, Waheed Panhwar, told that the 15 Madadgar police received a call from a neighbour of Pirzado about her dead body at 4.15 am.

The Sindhi nationalist leaders have expressed sadness over her death and have called for an impartial investigation. The JSQM requested the police officials to thoroughly investigate the case and if her death appears to be a murder then bring the culprit to the book. The party also announced three-day mourning.

He said the police party which reached the flat found her body hanging from the ceiling fan with a piece of cloth. "One foot of the deceased was touching her bed," he told. The body was later shifted to Liaquat University Hospital.

Panhwar said the forensic team also visited the apartment and collected evidences. According to him, the initial medical report also indicated suicide but her family claims she was killed.

Jan Muhammad Pirzado, Murk’s father, told the media that he spoke to her daughter on Tuesday night and “she did not sound so deeply depressed as to make me believe that she was going to take her life. I won't accept that it is suicide until it is proven through medical report and investigation."

Meanwhile, Saif Jatoi, who claimed to be her closest friend, in his video message has offered himself for investigation. "If I am proven guilty behind Murk's death, I shall be stoned to death as it is done in Afghanistan." He said if Pirzado's family believes that her death was caused by murder he was willing to offer himself for interrogation.

According to him, she told him that she was going to commit suicide during their conversation over mobile phone past Tuesday midnight. "I heard her phone dropping on ground as if she was climbing up to hang herself."

Jatoi claimed that he later kept calling her but the calls were not attended after which he phoned the watchman and asked him to check out her in the flat. He told that he called back watchmen around 3 am and was informed that she was not responding at the door. Jatoi said he again tried to call her but to no avail. Consequently, he asked watchman to break in the flat.

Her dead body was shifted to her hometown, Manjhand, in Jamshoro district where she was laid to rest at Shah Awais Karni graveyard after offering her Namaz-e-Janaza.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 16^th, 2023.