KARACHI: A family dispute over a marriage proposal led to an armed attack in Baldia Town on Tuesday that killed a young woman and left her mother badly wounded, police said.

They said the victim, identified as 20-year-old Benazir, and her mother, Marvi, were shot at by their close relatives Sultan and Sartaj inside the victims’ home in Yousuf Goth of Baldia Town. The attackers, they said, were pressing the victims to fix Benazir’s marriage with a man in their family which they were resisting.

“The issue between the two families had been under discussion for the past few days,” said Inspector Arz Mohammad, the SHO of the Saeedabad police station. “The two men [Sultan and Sartaj] came again today when the father of the girl, Dildar Hussain, was not at home. The arguments between the two sides turned violent when the two [Sultan and Sartaj] pulled out pistols and fired multiple shots and ran away, leaving both women critically wounded.”

He said the victims were moved to the civil hospital, where doctors pronounced Benazir dead and shifted her mother to the operation theatre for surgery.

“We have identified the attackers and also located their home in Laasi Goth. They have run away and their home is locked. We are very much hopeful to trace and arrest them soon. An FIR has been registered against the two suspects on a complaint of the deceased’s father,” added the SHO of the Saeedabad police station.

Published in Dawn, October 3rd, 2018