KHUZDAR: A prominent political leader and tribal elder of Awaran district was killed and two other people were injured in a bomb blast in the industrial town of Hub on Monday night.

Police said that Mir Akram Sajidi was traveling in his car along with two other persons on the Quetta-Karachi national highway when a powerful blast occurred in the car.

After receiving information about the incident, police personnel rushed to the area. They shifted the body and the injured to the Jam Ghulam Qadir Memorial Hospital in Hub.

“Akram Sajidi received multiple injuries and died on the spot,” District Police Officer Tariq Mastoi told Dawn. He said an improvised explosive device was attached to the bottom of the vehicle. The injured were identified as Abdul Karim Sajidi, a retired employee of the Quetta Electric Supply Company, and Mohammad Rafiq Sajidi. They both hailed from Awaran district. It was the second incident of car bomb blast in Hub in three weeks.

Earlier on Oct 11, a bomb exploded in the car of a local journalist, Shahid Zehri, in which he lost his life. Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo, who himself belongs to Awaran district, has condemned the killing of Akram Sajidi in the bomb blast. He termed the bomb attack a cowardly act and said that elements behind the blast would soon be brought to justice.

He expressed sorrow over Akram Sajidi’s death, saying that he was not only a political figure, but also a business leader of the area. He directed the inspector general of Balochistan police to take all possible steps for the arrest of the people involved in the blast.—Abdul Wahid Shahwani

Published in Dawn, November 2nd, 2021