Shia lawyer shot dead in Karachi

• MQM denounces their lawyer’s murder, Rizvi says specific group of like-minded people is being targeted

Syed Ali Hasnain Bukhari, a senior Shia lawyer, who was also a counsel for several Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) activists and a member of party’s Legal Aid Committee, was shot dead in Karachi’s Korangi No 1 1/2 area on Wednesday.

As Bukhari left his residence for work, two men on a motorcycle intercepted his vehicle in Korangi, fired three bullets and fled. He succumbed to his wounds while being shifted to a hospital for treatment.

Fear and panic gripped the area after the attack as rescue teams remained busy in crime scene procedures.

SHC TAKES NOTICE:

Taking notice of the murder, Sindh High Court Chief (SHC) Chief Justice Faisal Arab Wednesday issued notice to federal and provincial law officers to submit reports of the authorities. He converted into constitutional petition a letter addressed to him by SHC Bar Association through which it requested the CJ to direct the authorities concerned to investigate the incident and arrest culprits behind lawyer’s murder.

MQM WANTS END TO TARGET KILLING:

Following the incident, an MQM spokesperson said that the senior lawyer was a party member and the killing was the fourth incident of its kind during the past week.

The victim was representing several MQM workers in cases related to enforced disappearances and arrests during the ongoing operation in Karachi, he added.

Expressing anger over Bukhari’s murder, MQM Coordination Committee members have demanded the government to bring banned outfits to justice.

During a press conference in Karachi, MQM’s Haider Abbas Rizvi said that a specific group of like-minded people is being targeted. The criminals belonging to banned organisations commit crimes and remain at large, he added.

Terming Bukhari’s killing a conspiracy, Rizvi said that establishing committees to solve problems is “not helpful” and strict action is required against banned outfits.

The committee members demanded Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Interior Minister, Sindh governor and Sindh chief minister to arrest Bukhari’s murderers.