KARACHI – A prominent religious scholar and leader of the Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ), Maulana Ahmed Madni, and his son were gunned down by unidentified men in Karachi on Saturday. Police said two men riding a motorcycle opened fire at Madni’s vehicle in New Karachi area.
The religious scholar’s son Abu Bakar, died on the spot, while Madni died on way to the hospital. New Karachi DSP told Pakistan Today that the murder could be an act sectarian violence. Madni was the stepbrother of late Azam Tariq, the founding member and head of Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP). The SSP is a Deobandi organisation that currently operates under a new name of ASWJ.
Ahmed Madni was the founder of a religious seminary, Jamia Muhammadia, situated in Buffer Zone area of Karachi. Son after the attack, police arrived at the scene and cordoned off the area to collect evidence. The bodies were shifted to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for legal formalities. Police recovered two TT pistols with a licence and eight bullets from the slain religious leader’s car.
The attackers used 9mm pistols in the assassination, as was evident from its bullet shells found on the spot. A heavy contingent of police and Rangers was deployed in the area to ward off a possible reaction by ASWJ activists. Tension prevailed in ASWJ-dominated areas, including Nagan Chowrangi, Malir, New Karachi, Korangi and Saddar.
Hundreds of ASWJ activists gathered outside Abbasi Shaheed Hospital and shouted slogans against the government, demanding the immediate arrest of attackers. AWSJ leader Maulana Ahmed Ludhianvi told reporters that the government was not interested in maintaining law and order, as it had released the person who was involved in the murder of Azam Tariq.
He asked ASWJ activists not to take the law into their hands and announced that the time for Madni’s funeral would be announced in the morning. He said more than 100 ASWJ leaders and activists had been killed in a year, showing the poor performance of law enforcement agencies.
“If the government does not provide security to our leaders and activists, we will be right to act in self-defence,” he said, adding, “We will announce our future strategy after a meeting.”
