PTI lawmaker shot dead

Farid Khan’s driver also died in the attack in Hangu; brother injured.

HANGU/ PESHAWAR:

In a first targeted attack following the May 11 parliamentary elections, a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, Farid Khan, was shot dead by gunmen in Hangu district on Monday.

MPA Farid, along with his driver Ayaz and brother Shah Nawaz, was travelling to Hangu city from the suburban Speen Khawra area, when gunmen opened fire on his car, killing Farid on the spot and injuring his driver and brother.

Security forces and police rushed to the site and shifted the casualties to a nearby hospital where the driver also succumbed to his injuries.

The brazen attack sparked a noisy protest in the main Hangu bazaar where protesters blocked the Kohat-Thal-Hangu Road and fired gunshots into the air. The protest continued for some time and later the protesters dispersed peacefully.

According to Deputy Superintendent Police (DSP) Hussain Badshah, the motive behind the murder could not be immediately ascertained. He added that Farid’s body would be sent to his hometown after autopsy.



Security forces and police started a search operation, while the Hangu administration imposed an indefinite curfew in the city and its adjacent areas.

Farid Khan, 38, was a resident of the Darwezi Palosa area of Hangu district and won PK-42 as an independent candidate in the May 11 elections. However, on May 17 he joined the PTI.

In his last informal interview with The Express Tribune, Farid Khan, who was supposed to be the poorest MPA in the provincial assembly, said that he joined the PTI because he believed as an independent lawmaker he wouldn’t be able to work for the development of his constituency. “People reposed confidence in me and now I’ve a golden opportunity to serve them,” he added.

Farid, clad in shalwar kameez and wearing plastic flip-flop, further told The Express Tribune that he had borrowed a car from a friend to travel to Peshawar to attend the inaugural session of the provincial assembly.

According to the declaration of assets submitted to the Election Commission of Pakistan, Farid owns a motorcycle and a house.

Farid added that he joined politics not because he wanted to become a leader but because he wanted to serve the people of his constituency.

Condemnation

President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the killing of Farid Khan and directed the provincial authorities to investigate the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice.

PTI chief Imran Khan also condemned the attack and offered condolences to the bereaved family.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 4^th, 2013.