KARACHI – Central Prison Karachi has been included in the scope of investigations into the murders of Akhtar Hussain, vice-chairperson of the Afaq Ahmed-led Mohajir Qaumi Movement-Haqiqi (MQM-H), and another senior leader of the party, Abdul Kareem, with police officials suspecting that information is being leaked from inside the jail premises to aid target killers carry out their mission.
“This was the second incident in the past six months that the MQM-H leadership has been targeted by pillion riders, and that too, while they were on their way back from Central Prison Karachi after meeting with party chairman Afaq Ahmed,” said Jamshed Town Police Officer (TPO) Amir Faruqi told Pakistan Today on Tuesday.
Faruqi recalled that a few months ago, MQM-H’s legal advisor was also targeted and killed just a few miles away from the jail. He said the legal advisor was also waiting at a stoplight in the Bahadurabad area, when four pillion riders stopped and opened fire at him. “It seems that informers inside the Central Prison Karachi are aiding the assassins of the MQM-H leadership, and passing information about scheduled meetings between Afaq Ahmed and workers of his party,” Faruqi said, explaining that the police are back-pedalling all clues to determine any links.
Faruqi said the incident could be a result of a very old rivalry between political groups, claiming that the police have identified targeted killers and are working to arrest the culprits identified. However, he said, it would be premature to disclose their names. Meanwhile, a leader of the MQM-H, Khalid Nakshbandi, told Pakistan Today that the police should extend the circle of investigation to Central Prison Karachi due to similarities in the two incidents of targeted killings. He said the government should pay heed to the statements of former Home Minister Dr Zulfiqar Mirza to arrest target killers.
On Tuesday, though, unrest prevailed in the Landhi and Quaidabad areas ahead of the funeral of MQM-H’s assassinated leader. Some unidentified armed persons forcibly closed shops in the area, while two private vehicles were also set on fire by an angry mob in the jurisdiction of Quaidabad and Shah Latif Town police stations respectively. The funeral prayers were offered at Muhammadi Masjid, Sher Pao Colony, Landhi, and were attended by a large number of MQM-H workers and supporters.
