PESHAWAR, June 20: Doctors on Friday threatened to close down the  Ayub Medical Complex, Abbottabad, if the government failed to arrest the  killer of Dr Farooq Hilal, who was shot dead on June 17 by a lawyer.

Speaking at a press conference here, doctors of the AMC, including Dr Asad, Dr Faisal and Dr Sham Jan, alleged that Sardar Moazam advocate had gunned down Dr Hilal, a demonstrator at the Ayub Medical College, in the premises of the complex.

An FIR was registered at the next day after huge protest by the doctors and the medical students, but the killer was still at large, owing to his influence, they alleged.

According to them, the police threw tear-gas shells at them when they blocked the road to press for the arrest of the killer on June 18.

They lamented that Dr Hilal was killed without any reason by the lawyer, who wielded influence in the area. The police were unable to lay hands on the killer, they said and asked the provincial government to order his immediate arrest to provide relief to the bereaved family and end the unrest among the doctors.

They alleged that the local Nazim and the elected representatives of the Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid-i-Azam) and the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal were close to the killer.

“But, we are committed to bringing the assassin to justice. We would close  the AMC till the arrest of the killer,” said the doctors.

On June 18, the police and Frontier Constabulary beat the students  and hurled tear-gas shells at them, that caused injuries to many doctors and students, they said.

They said Dr Farooq, a resident of Swat, was killed in the presence of his colleagues Dr Shakil, Dr Farman and Dr Tawaf Gul and under-training deputy Superintendent of police, Rabnawaz, who were eyewitnesses in the  FIR.

They said the witnesses should be provided security as they were being threatened.

They alleged that the provincial government and the Nazim were using the issue to settle a score.

They said that they were on strike at the AMC but providing emergency treatment to the patients in critical condition.

They said that if the killer was not arrested immediately, they would close down the hospital and extend the strike to other medical institutions of the province, the responsibility of which would rest with the government.

“We will march to Islamabad to bring the culprit to justice,” they vowed.

Doctors and staff in the three hospitals in Abbottabad — the Ayub Medical Complex, the Women’s and Children’s Hospital and the district headquarters hospital — continued their strike on Friday except for the emergency cover, Rashid Javed in Abbottabad adds.

No treatment was provided to the patients in the wards, hundreds of people of could not be attended because of the closure of the out-patient departments and no operation was carried out. The patients had to go to the private hospitals for treatment. It was reported that 12 deaths had taken place during the last two days in the hospitals.

The protesting doctors and students had blocked the Karakoram Highway for 28 hours and after opening it on Thursday given a 48-hour deadline for the arrest of the accused.

On Friday students and doctors took out a procession which marched on the city’s main road and ended in the college, where their leaders demanded early arrest of the accused, Sardar Moazam advocate.

The deputy inspector-general of police, Hazara, Rao Ameen Hashim, said efforts to arrest the accused were under way.

Our Mansehra Correspondent adds: Private clinics and the district headquarters hospital on Friday observed a strike to protest against Dr Farooq’s murder, who was recently killed in Abbotabad.

The DHQ hospital’s OPD remained closed but emergency cover was provided to patients in serious condition.

Later, a general body meeting of the doctors’ association condemned the murder of Dr Farooq and demanded immediate arrest of the culprit. The meeting also urged the government to provide security and safe working environment to the doctors community.