Maulana Samiul Haq laid to rest in Akora Khattak, no clue of murderers yet

–Police briefly detain secretary, servant of JUI-S chief for interrogation 

–Funeral attended by KP CM, governor besides high-profile political leaders

PESHAWAR: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S) chief and ‘Father of Taliban’ Maulana Samiul Haq was laid to rest in Akora Khattak inside Darul Uloom Haqqania on Saturday, a day after he was brutally killed in a knife attack at his residence in Rawalpindi.

Funeral prayers of Haq, a two-time senator and an ally of Prime Minister Imran Khan, were held at Khushal Khan College Ground and attended by several prominent political leaders, including CM Mehmood Khattak and Governor Shah Farman.

Meanwhile, police have registered an FIR against unknown assailants and reportedly interrogated slain cleric’s personal secretary Ahmed Shah and guard for three hours in connection with the murder.

The detainees in their initial statement said, “The two men [suspected of murder] had visited Maulana Haq on several occasions before as well and wanted to meet him alone.”

“The JUI-S chief sent us to the market to bring food and drinks,” they further said. “When we returned after 15 minutes, we found Haq lying in a pool of blood,” the staff workers added. However, the police agreed to release them on Haq’s son request so that they could attend the funeral. But they can be taken into custody again for further questioning, police added.

According to the FIR registered at Airport Police Station, Ahmed Shah had informed Hamidul Haq over the phone that someone had stabbed his father. It stated that Sami, who had received a total of 12 wounds on his stomach, heart, forehead and ears, was shifted to the Safari Hospital but could not be resuscitated.

The son commented on the post-mortem, saying said he did not want to have a post-mortem examination conducted on the body of his father as it was “against Islamic law”.

Separately, forensic experts and investigation officers gathered evidence from his residence in Rawalpindi. The investigation officers also carried out fingerprint scans on the phone, glasses and other personal items of the JUI-S chief. A CCTV footage of the housing society where the JUI-S chief resided is also being obtained to identify the suspects.

DEATH:

On Friday, Haq was assassinated at his Bahria Town residence when his staff were out. Haq’s servant said he had gone outside to buy groceries, only to return to his employer lying in pool of blood. Sami shortly died after that. The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) immediately reached the spot and initiated a probe into the murder.

His death was condemned by many, including the prime minister and the army chief. PM had expressed grief and sorrow at his ally’s death and ordered a swift investigation besides seeking an inquiry report at the earliest.

General Bajwa had condemned assassination through ISPR twitter handle, while President Dr Arif Alvi, AJK PM Raja Farooq Haider Khan, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif, JI chief Sirajul Haq, Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Noorul Haq Qadri, State Minister for Interior Shehryar Afridi and others condemned the incident and expressed grief over the assassination of Haq.