SUKKUR, Oct 30: The prime suspect of an armed attack on a Pakistan People’s Party rally in Khairpur — which claimed the lives of seven people — was on Tuesday killed in a mysterious encounter between police and his suspected accomplices, who allegedly stormed a police station to spring him.

While the police insisted that Azizullah Janwari was killed in the shoot-out, his community members alleged that the Sukkur police killed him in a fake encounter.

He was arrested in Bahawalpur on Oct 15 for his alleged involvement in the attack on the Oct 7 PPP rally in Sadoro Janwari village of Khairpur district in which seven people, including four PPP activists and a journalist, were shot dead.

MNA Nafisa Shah, the daughter of Sindh Chief Miniser Qaim Ali Shah, was to address the gathering.

Following his arrest, the suspect was brought to Khairpur for remand and then handed over to the Sukkur police for further investigation.

He was kept at the Bagerji police station on police remand, according to Larkana DIG Abdul Khalique Shaikh.

Sukkur SSP Pir Muhammad Shah told Dawn that unidentified armed men of the Janwari tribe attacked the Bagerji police station in the early hours of Tuesday and some of them managed to reach the lock-up, where suspect Janwari was lodged, to get him released.

He said that the attackers brought the prime suspect out of the lock-up, where a vehicle was ready for a quick escape. They were firing indiscriminately at the police, who also returned fire.

The shoot-out lasted around 30 minutes and as a result of firing, suspect Janwari was killed and two of the attackers also suffered bullet wounds, the SSP added.

He said that the wounded attackers managed to escape along with their other accomplices, but they failed to take away the body of the prime suspect.

However, no policeman got hurt in the shoot-out.

Suspect Janwari’s body was taken to the Civil Hospital Sukkur for a post-mortem examination. Later, the body was handed over to the Edhi foundation for burial. He would be buried in the morning.

A case (FIR 48/2012) was registered under Sections 324 (attempted murder), 353 (criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 34 (common intention) on a complaint of Head Constable Irshad Manganhar at the Bagerji police station against Saadullah Janwari, a son of deceased Janwari, and five other unidentified persons.

Police sources said that the deceased was involved in different cases of heinous crime and the government had announced a bounty of Rs2.5 million for his arrest.

The sources said that suspect Janwari had actually surrendered himself to the police in Bahawalpur as a result of negotiations through a middleman after taking certain assurances.

Meanwhile, the Sindh police chief took notice of the incident and directed the Larkana DIG to conduct an inquiry and submit a report to him immediately.