LAHORE: A man allegedly committed suicide after shooting dead his father and two sisters and injuring his brother over a dispute in Shafiqabad late on Wednesday.

Police inquiries suggested that Awais Ahmad first shot at his two sisters and then went to the room of his father Riaz Ahmad and killed him. He them shot himself dead.

His elder sister Maryam had been living with her parents for the last couple of weeks while younger sister Sidra was a student at a local university. Both of them succumbed to chest injuries.

The condition of Awais’ injured brother Farhan was stable as he suffered shoulder injury, police said.

In his statement to police, Farhan said he had rushed to the room on hearing gunshots. As he reached there, he saw his brother Awais holding a pistol and sisters lying in a pool of blood. He further told police that as he moved to overpower his brother, he shot at him.

Quoting police inquiries, DSP Sheikh Ghias said Awais took this extreme step after his family resisted his decision of contracting marriage with his former wife whom he had divorced a couple of years back. After divorce, his wife (S) had contracted second marriage, he said, adding that a few months after marriage, her second husband also divorced her over some issues.

As Awais came to know about her separation, he expressed his wish to marry her again and asked his parents to visit her home. This matter led to unrest in the family, the DSP said, adding that Awais on Wednesday night exchanged harsh words with his father and sisters when they refused to accompany him to the home of his former wife.

He brought a pistol and killed them before committing suicide, the police officer said. The bodies were sent to the city morgue for autopsy after police registered a case on the report of Awais’ another brother Shahzad.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2019