KARACHI, Oct 6: A lawyer, his seven-year-old son and an alleged car hijacker were shot dead at Gulshan Chowrangi on Saturday afternoon in what police claimed a shootout.

The lawyer, Mumtaz Ali, his son Daniyal and the bandit, Janan, died on the spot.

This is the second such incident this year in which innocent people have been killed as a result of police firing. On March 19 two children of Rashida Asad, Senior Civil and Assistant Sessions Judge, Karachi West, Baby Aliza, aged five, and Master Auzam, aged two-and-a-half years, were killed when police opened indiscriminate fire on the judge’s car in which three bandits had attempted to flee by making the family of the judge hostage.

Police said lawyer Mumtaz Ali, with his son Daniyal, left his house in Phase-1 in Defence Housing Authority in his Toyota Prado (BC-9222) vehicle in the afternoon. When he reached the corner of street No 25, two bandits intercepted them and got into the vehicle at gunpoint.

Police were informed, and they spotted the vehicle near Nipa Chowrangi in Gulshan-i-Iqbal. Police tried to intercept or stop the vehicle, but the bandits did not stop. Police chased after the vehicle and intercepted it at Gulshan Chowrangi where the alleged car hijackers opened fire on police. In retaliation police opened indiscriminate fire killing the lawyer, Mumtaz Ali, his son Daniyal and one of the car hijackers, identified as Janan. Police arrested the other car hijacker, identified as Liaquat Khaskheli, hailing from Daur in the interior of Sindh.

Police maintained that they had received a message over wireless that a four-wheeler had been hijacked, but they did not know whether the owner of the vehicle and his son were also travelling in it.

SSP East Rahmat Khan Mehsood told Dawn that police were going to do a good job, but an unfortunate incident happened.

“The vehicle had tinted glasses, so police could not see who were sitting inside.”

When told that the windscreen could never be tinted and police could have seen those sitting in the vehicle, the SSP became annoyed saying that one could not imagine a tragic situation like the one that arose today. He said police had done what they could do in good faith, but it was unfortunate that the lawyer and his son lost their lives.

Police had given an identical excuse in the case of Judge Rashida Asad’s children’s killing on March 19 in PECHS.

However, the IG Sindh, Syed Kamal Shah, said he would order a senior police official to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter, and if police were found guilty, stringent action would be taken.

He said police were supposed to act against criminals, but they should not act in a manner that could result in the death of innocent people.

CARJACKING: Eleven vehicles — five cars and six motorcycles — were either hijacked or stolen in the city on Saturday, the police said.