RAWALPINDI: Three sisters and their brother were gunned down while another woman was injured over a family dispute in Dhoke Kamal Deen located in the Airport police area on Monday.

The injured woman, Areej Kanwal, 22, was shifted to Benazir Bhutto Hospital (BBH) where she was stated to be in a critical condition.

The three sisters were killed in their house while their brother was shot dead in his shop located in the same locality. The alleged killer, however, escaped. Though the injured has identified the killer as Ghulam Abbas, police believed that there could be more people involved in the crime.

Initial police investigation showed that Areej Kanwal married with Khuram Abbas in 2019. However, since the couple got married, relations between them remained strained and Areej was reportedly trying to end the marriage.

Police while quoting the injured Areej said Ghulam Abbas, the brother of her husband, came to her house and opened fire on her and her three sisters - Sabahat Iqbal, 25, Kiran Iqbal, 27, Hira Nosheen Iqbal, 20.

After killing the three sisters, the suspect rushed to the shop of their brother Haider Ali, 20, and also shot and critically injured him. The injured was being taken to the District Headquarters Hospital when he died.

According to a senior police officer, the motive behind the murders was a dispute of divorce between Khuram and his wife Areej.

“One thing common at the crime scene was poverty,” he said and added that Haider Ali was killed for failing to convince his sister not to seek divorce from her husband.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2020