ISLAMABAD – Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer was shot dead by one of his own bodyguards in broad daylight in the federal capital on Tuesday. Taseer, 66, who was appointed the Punjab governor in 2008, was killed by Elite Force commando Mumtaz Qadri, who claimed in a police statement to have killed Taseer for calling the blasphemy laws “black laws”.
The brazen shooting came as Taseer was about to get into his car after enjoying a late lunch with his friend Waqas, who owns Best Western chain of hotels, in a cafe in Kohsar market, around 100 meters from his private residence where he would always stay when in Islamabad.
The assassin, who is a constable of the Punjab Elite Force, surrendered to police and confessed to his crime, saying he had killed the governor because he had committed blasphemy. “I had decided to kill the governor three days ago,” Interior Minister Rehman Malik quoted Qadri as saying. Taseer received at least 27 bullets – shots from a pointblank range -to various parts of his body.
Taseer was outspoken against the Taliban and militants hunkered down in the country’s northwest, who have also made increasing inroads into Punjab in recent years, and most recently against the blasphemy laws. Qadri was assigned in Taseer’s security detail for the sixth time.
However, he was not supposed to accompany the governor on Tuesday and had especially requested his duty officer to assign him the security duty. “He immediately fell to the ground… the guards arrested Qadri who had surrendered himself by laying down his official weapon. Some other guards put the governor in an accompanying police van and rushed him to hospital,” a witness said.
The assassin was taken to Kohsar police station, which was also put under tight security. The capital police immediately reached the spot and cordoned off the entire area and also took a few suspicious people into custody for interrogation. Police also took six Elite Force personnel into custody for interrogation and registered an FIR against Qadri under anti-terrorism act.
They also collected evidence from the site of the incident to be sent for forensic tests. The governor’s body was later taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) for autopsy. A witness Aly Khan told Pakistan Today that he was having lunch at a nearby restaurant when he heard a gun shot.
“First, I heard a gunshot followed by a burst…I rushed out to see what was happening. A person was lying on the ground and some policemen were trying to get hold of him. Later, a police vehicle came and the guy was taken away,” he said. “The governor used to visit the market frequently on foot. He used to go shopping here,” local resident Mazhar Iqbal, said. “When I heard the gun fire I came out. I just had a glimpse of the governor from a distance as he was being put in a vehicle. He was accompanied by two bodyguards and a few police officials.”
Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani immediately appealed to PPP workers and supporters to remain calm and allow time for a proper investigation, announcing three days of national mourning with flags at half mast. The Pakistan People’s Party announced two-week mourning. Soon after the news of Taseer’s killing flashed on TV channels, angry PPP workers took to streets in Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Multan, Karachi and other cities and protested against extremist elements in the country.
PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif was addressing a press conference in Islamabad when he received the news of Taseer’s assassination, after which he called the press conference off. The interior minister formed a joint investigation team to be headed by Islamabad DIG Bin Yameen and including SP investigation and officials of secret agencies.
The Punjab governor’s funeral prayers will be offered at the Governor’s House at 1pm today (Wednesday).
