PESHAWAR: The alleged killer of senior lawyer Abdul Latif Afridi was remanded into police custody on Tuesday as the victim was laid to rest in his native village Mera Masho Gagar.

The alleged assailant, Adnan Samiul­lah Afridi, who was arrested immediately after the attack, was remanded for two days by Judicial Magistrate Badar Munir.

He was presented before the judge at the Judicial Complex amid strict security. The judge was informed that the accused has confessed to killing Mr Afridi over a family feud.

The investigation team pleaded for further custody to determine if this was an isolated act by the killer or if he was facilitated by anyone.

The court granted two-day physical custody and directed the police to present the accused on Jan 19.

Mr Afridi’s funeral was held at Bagh-i-Naran in Peshawar’s Hayatabad Township.

The gathering was attended by a large number of people from different walks of life including judges, politicians, lawyers, tribal leaders, civil society activists, etc.

Veteran lawyer laid to rest in native village amid moving tributes; Mian Iftikhar urges all Pakhtuns to end enmities

Later his coffin was taken to his village on Kohat Road where he was buried amid moving tributes.

Addressing the funeral gathering, Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was personally looking into the attack and directed him to meet the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on the issue.

Mr Tarar said PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif, who had personal ties with the deceased, also gave similar instructions.

“Latif Lala was not only a leader of Pashtuns but of all those aspiring for rule of law, supremacy of the Consti­tu­tion and democracy,” the law minister said.

Mr Afridi’s son, Danish Khan Afridi, said his father was innocent and killed for no reason.

He regretted that senior lawyers were not safe even inside the courts.

Apart from Mr Tarar, the funeral was addressed by Awami National Party leaders Ghulam Ahmad Bilour and Mian Iftikhar Hussain, former senator Afrasiab Khattak, Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai, MNA and National Demo­cratic Movement (NDM) chief Mohsin Dawar, Jamaat-i-Islami MPA Inayatullah Khan, Qaumi Watan Party’s provincial chief Sikander Hayat Sherpao, Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Abid Saqi, SCBA ex-president Ahsan Bhoon, Gilgit–Baltistan Awami Workers Party president Baba Jan, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) leader Manzoor Pashteen, etc.

ANP’s Mian Iftikhar Hussain called upon all Pakhtuns to end enmities as they end up taking the lives of towering personalities like Mr Afridi.

He said the deceased was the “voice of voiceless people” across the country.

Mr Jan of GB Awami Workers Party said the deceased was not only a leader of KP but also of people in GB. He always raised his voice for the rights of GB people, Mr Jan said in his tribute.

“Not only KP, but Afghans living on both sides of the [Pak-Afghan] border became orphans with the death of Latif [Afridi] Lala,” said Mr Dawar of NDM.

Mr Afridi left at a time when a new war has been imposed on Pakhtuns in the region, said Mr Dawar.

Mr Inayatullah of JI said the deceased strived for civilian supremacy and rule of law. “Such people never die.”

Present and former office-bearers of SCBA — of which Mr Latif was an ex-president — said his death had left them devastated.

“We believe that Lala [Mr Afridi] was a very strong voice of the downtrodden and oppressed people of this country,” said Mr Bhoon.

Members of the joint action committee (JAC) for human rights Karachi also expressed deep sorrow and grief over the brutal murder of Mr Afridi.

In a press release, the committee, featuring prominent rights organisations, said Mr Afridi was a “voice for democracy and human rights and always challenged the dictatorship. His brutal murder is an irreparable loss to civil society”.

The JAC comprises Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Women Action Forum, and others.

Meanwhile, a complete strike was also observed in courts across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the call of the Pakistan Bar Council and KP Bar Council to protest against the killing.

Published in Dawn, January 18th, 2023