A large number of protesters staged a demonstration in front of Quetta Civil Hospital and blocked MA Jinnah Road to protest the killing of a student allegedly at the hand of police personnel on Sunday.
Participants chanted slogans against the police and strongly condemned the killing. They also burnt tyres on various parts of Jinnah Road and forced shopkeepers to close down their business. The relatives of deceased brought the body of the teenager on Jinnah Road and demanded stern action against police personnel involved in killing. Due to the closure of main Jinnah Road, traffic flow had to be diverted on other road that caused great inconvenience to the public.
The firing incident occurred on Sunday morning when a policeman allegedly opened fire on 18–year-old Saeed Asghar Hussain in the main city causing his instant death. Police officials say police personnel were taking Hussain to a nearby police station for investigation when he tried to escape. The police opened fire that caused his death. A heavy contingent of police and Balochistan Constabulary tried to control the situation and dispersed the protesters.
Quetta SSP Muhammad Tariq said both police officials had been arrested and were being investigated. However, the parents of deceased are yet to register a case against the accused.
Meanwhile, Balochistan Trader Association and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party have jointly given a shutter down call for today (Monday).
Separately, a partial shutter-down strike was observed in Quetta and some other towns of Balochistan on Sunday against the killing of Maulana Mohammad Qasim Sasoli, a prayer leader of a local mosque and a leader of Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan (Noorani group), who was shot dead on Sariab Road on Friday. The strike call was given by Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan.
Strike was also observed in other towns of Balochistan, including Mastung, Kalat, Khuzdar, Jaffarabad and Naseerabad.
Meanwhile, four people including two women were killed in two separate incidents of firing in Naseerabad and Jhal Magsi districts.