LAHORE, May 10: Two people were killed and a police constable suffered injuries in two shootings in Nawab Town and Faisal Town on Friday.

Sadar SP (Operations) Javed Iqbal told Dawn that Zulfiqar Ali, of Shahpur Kanjran, was sitting at a taxi stand near Rescue 1122 office at Thokar Station when Kashif, alias Kashi, turned up there and opened fire at him at 10:30am.

The members of the Zulfiqar group also exchanged fire which left Kashif and a passerby constable injured.

He said Kashif who suffered three bullet injuries managed to run away.

The SP said someone alerted the Rescue 1122 and an ambulance shifted both Zulfiqar and the constable to Jinnah Hospital where Zulfiqar was received dead. His fellows and heirs blocked Thokar Chowk in protest.

He said a group of 15 people chased Kashif who was brought to Jinnah Hospital. He said the suspects entered the emergency ward, shot at and killed 35-year-old Kashif and fled.

He claimed as the police were handling protesters and shifting injured constable Amjad to the hospital, it was initially not in their knowledge that Kashif would be shifted to Jinnah Hospital.

He said protesters dispersed after learning about Kashif’s murder.

The SP said preliminary police inquiries showed that Kashif and Zulfiqar had developed an enmity two years ago after the former killed the two brothers of the latter.

He said Kashif was a proclaimed offender as at least nine cases of murder, robbery and robbery-cum-murder were registered against him with different police stations, including Chuhng and Hanjarwal.

Model Town SP (Operations) Tariq Aziz said CCTV cameras of Jinnah Hospital were not functional at the time of shooting.

He said the hospital police check-post officials were attending the injured constable which provided an opportunity to suspects to enter the ward and kill Kashif.

Dr Shahid Chaudhry, an eyewitness, told this reporter that around 10 to 15 armed men entered the surgical emergency ward, opened indiscriminate fire which triggered panic. He said the suspects then came to Kashif’s bed, shot at and killed him and left the ward.

He said around 10 policemen and few hospital guards, who were present in the emergency, disappeared from the scene.

He said doctors and paramedical staff shut down the emergency in protest for two hours. They resumed duty when the health minister and the secretary intervened and urged them to start working.

Police registered separate cases and began investigation.