Rangers arrest killer of MQM worker Waqas Shah

Asif Ali accused of shooting Shah during Nine Zero raid

KARACHI:

The Rangers claim to have arrested the killer of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement's worker, who was gunned down during the March 11 raid at the party headquarters, from Shahdadpur.

Waqas Shah, 25, a student of women studies at Karachi University, was mysteriously shot dead during the protest against the paramilitary raid at Nine Zero.  Asif Ali killed Shah and then tried to blame the Rangers, a press release issued by the paramilitary force on Wednesday evening read, adding that the killing was plotted to malign the paramilitary force.

The Rangers also mentioned the names of the party's top leaders, Farooq Sattar and Khalid Maqbool Siddiqi, stating that they knew the killer.

In reaction to this, the MQM condemned the Rangers press release and labeled it a bid to protect the real culprits. Ali, a party worker, was picked up by law enforcement agencies on May 12 but his arrest was revealed today, the party said in a statement.

Rangers intensify patrolling near Nine-Zero

Rangers have intensified patrolling around MQM headquarters, Nine-Zero, just hours ahead of a scheduled address by the party’s founding leader Altaf Hussain.

A heavy contingent of the paramilitary force has reportedly been stationed at the Mukka Chowk, just meters away from the party’s headquarters at Nine-Zero and Jinnah Ground.

Initially, around four to five vans of Rangers were seen heading towards Nine-Zero, however, they stopped at Mukka Chowk and started snap-checking. A local told The Express Tribune over the phone, that a large number of party workers and supporters were converging there to hear their leader.