Armed robbery: JPMC’s Dr Saleem Kharal shot dead in Karachi

Police officials rule out any possibility of a target killing; victim was the younger brother of PPP MPA Naeem Kharal.

KARACHI: Head of the Pathological Department at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre Professor Dr Saleem Kharal was shot dead while resisting armed robbers in Karachi late Friday night.

Dr Saleem was the younger brother of Pakistan Peoples Party MPA Naeem Kharal.

Police officials ruled out any possibility of a target killing, saying that the doctor was killed while resisting armed robbers.

The incident occurred just as Dr Saleem, 52, who was accompanied by his wife and a driver, was passing by the Punjab Chowrangi within the jurisdiction of the Gizri police station.

South District DIG Commandant Shaukat Ali Shah said that two men attempted to snatch the doctor’s car, while it was stopped at a traffic signal. When Dr Saleem resisted, the men opened fire at him.

Dr Saleem sustained a bullet injury to his chest and was rushed to the JPMC, where he succumbed to his injuries during treatment.

DIG Shah said that the victim’s wife also informed the police that it was not an act of target killing and confirmed her husband’s confrontation with the bandits.

His body has been handed over to his family, while a case is yet to be registered.

The Sindh government has taken notice of the incident and has asked the IGP Sindh to submit an initial investigation report.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 31^st, 2011.