RAWALPINDI: Five police officials were on Friday booked and two of them arrested for their alleged involvement in the killing of a former councillor in Kallar Syedan on Thursday night.

SHO Kallar Syedan has been suspended.

Habibur Rehman in his complaint said he and his brother-in-law Waheed Amjad, a former councillor, were returning to their native town in separate cars when a police team signaled Amjad to stop near Bank Chowk at about 10:30pm on Thursday.

He said Amjad stopped his car ahead of the police team and he (Habib) also stopped behind him. He said when he got out of his car, one of the police officials, whose name could be read as ASI Taqdees Akhtar, used abusive language against Amjad and was responded in the same way by the latter. In retaliation, Taqdees took a semi-machinegun (SMG) from his colleague and shot Amjad, who was on the driving seat.

He said Amjad was seriously injured and he shifted him to his car and drove him to a local hospital from where he was referred to the DHQ Rawalpindi where he died.

Mr Habib identified the other police officials as ASI Imran Khalid, constables Habib Akhtar, Azhar Mehmood and Atif Shahzad.

Soon after the injured person was shifted to hospital, the suspected police officials registered an FIR against him on the charges of attempt to kill and preventing a public servant from discharging his duty.

But after registration of a murder case on the complaint of Mr Habib, the city police officer suspended the five policemen while two of them - ASI Imran Khalid and constable Habib Akhtar - were arrested. Raids were underway to arrest the other suspects.

When the body of the victim was on Friday morning handed over to his heirs in Sahote village, they put it on the Pindi-Kallar Road demanding arrest of the suspects. Till filing of this report, the road remained blocked.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2019