PESHAWAR: A traffic police officer was gunned down while on duty at Bala Maneri Chowk here on Monday.Sub-Inspector Muslim Khan of Charsadda and another constable were on duty when unknown armed men riding a motorcycle opened fire, critically injuring Muslim Khan. “He was rushed to Lady Reading Hospital but couldn’t survive,” said a police spokesman.

An official of Bala Manri police station quoting local sources said that the accused persons, after parking their motorcycle on a roadside, opened fire on the policeman from close range.

The police official said that case against unidentified persons had been registered and efforts were underway to arrest them.

The funeral prayers of the traffic cop were offered at Malik Saad Khan Police Lines. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan, Provincial Minister Habib-ur-Rehman, MPA Shaukat Yousufzai, IGP Nasir Khan Durrani, Commissioner Peshawar Munir Azam, CCPO Peshawar Aijaz Ahmed Khan and a large number of police officers and jawans attended the funeral.

Meanwhile, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister announced Rs3 million compensation for the brave police officer under the Shuhada Package. The chief minister also directed payment of his salary to his legal heirs till age of his retirement, free education for his children and immediate provision of employment to one member of the family.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2014