Additional sessions judge shot by gunmen

Judge is a Shia Muslim and this could be an act of sectarian violence, says police official.

PESHAWAR:

Additional sessions judge Ihtisham Ali was injured when gunmen opened fire at him in Hayatabad on Saturday.

Ali was in his car when armed assailants, who were waiting near his house, opened fire at his vehicle. Ali received a bullet in the arm and was rushed to Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC) and later shifted to Lady Reading Hospital.

“Ihtisham Ali received injuries but his wounds are not fatal. The attackers, however, managed to escape,” said an official of the Hayatabad police station. “The incident took place in F2 near Itwar Bazaar.”

“Ali is a Shia Muslim and this could be an act of sectarian violence,” speculated the police official. “The two attackers were waiting for him outside his house and had done their homework by selecting a good place to target Ali. But he was lucky because the speed of the vehicle did not allow the attackers to fire precisely at him.”

The public relations officer (PRO) of Peshawar High Court (PHC), Abbas Gardazi said Ali was in the hospital, but out of danger. Ali is the son of former PHC chief justice Iban-e-Ali and this was a targeted attempt on his life, according to Gardazi.

In the past few months, there have been multiple incidents of sectarian violence, including the killing of Superintendent Police Hilal Haider and PPP’s president for Kurram Agency Dr Riaz Hussain.

Meanwhile, PHC Chief Justice Dost Muhammad Khan paid a visit to the wounded sessions judge at LRH. Justice Khan also met the investigation team which briefed him on initial investigations.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 20^th, 2013.