KARACHI, Sept 22: A former minority member of the Sindh Assembly, Malik Ata Mohammad, was gunned down outside his under-construction home in Mehmoodabad on Saturday, police said.

They, however, ruled out any political or religious motive for the killing, citing that the victim was targeted for personal reasons and the attackers had already been identified.

“The 63-year-old victim was sitting on a charpoy outside his home when three men riding a motorbike entered the street in Punjabi Gali, Mahmoodbad No 3,” said Baloch Colony SHO Inspector Murtaza Majeed. “They stopped and one of them fired multiple shots at Mr Malik before speeding away with his accomplices. He sustained five gunshot wounds and died on the spot.”

The body was later moved to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for medico-legal formalities, the SHO said, adding that the victim had a dispute with a group over a piece of land and some other real estate properties.

“Even the family recognised the fact and believed that the same group was involved in the killing of the victim who was an Ahmedi. The family is aggrieved and busy in funeral arrangements. But they have shared their concerns with investigators and three suspects would be nominated in the FIR,” added the officer.

Mr Malik was elected a Sindh Assembly member in 1997 as an independent candidate on a minority seat and joined the then ruling party Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz). However, his political loyalty shifted to the PML-Q after the 1999 coup staged by General Pervez Musharraf and gradually left active politics.

Clash leaves one dead

In Malir, an elderly passer-by was killed and another sustained a gunshot wound in an armed clash between two ‘criminal gangs’, police said.

The officials added that the two groups said to be involved in drug peddling and running gambling dens in the area exchanged gunfire in the Gharibabad area of Khokhrapar.

The clash left 55-year-old Munawwar Ali dead and 35-year-old Mohammad Akbar wounded.

“There is an old dispute between the two groups that turned ugly today,” said an official at the Malir City police station.

“Raids are being conducted for the culprits’ arrest. The police have detained some suspects and they are being interrogated,” he added.