KARACHI, June 18: A woman and a young man were killed in an armed clash between what police described as ‘criminal groups with political support’ in Gulistan-i-Jauhar on Monday.

The clash sowed fear in Pehlawan Goth and areas around Rabia City, where business activities remained suspended for a second consecutive day and public transport stayed off the road.

The police said the situation turned ugly when one of the gangs opened fire on their rivals who had come to Pehlawan Goth to mourn the death of Liaquat Bangash, a former Awami National Party (ANP) office-bearer who died reportedly after jumping off the fourth floor of a building to avoid arrest.

“That first incident of firing though did not cause any casualty, it sparked a clash-like situation between Bangash and Mudassir Chief groups,” said an official at the Gulistan-i-Jauhar police station.

The police said Mudassir alias chief, the suspected ring leader of a gang actively involved in drug peddling and other criminal activities, had an old rivalry with Liaquat Bangash.

“Afterwards armed men from the two sides took positions and exchanged fire. More than half a dozen people, including a woman, were wounded in the firing by the time the Rangers and police regained control of the area,” he added.

The victims were later identified as 40-year-old Gulshan Bibi, Imdad Hussain, 27, Hanif, 18, Saeed Adnan, 16, Javed, 29, Ali Raza, 32, Muddasir, 25, Atif, 20, Faizan, 30 and Asif, 30.

“They all were shifted to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, where Gulshan Bibi and Imdad Hussain died during treatment,” said the official.

“The woman was standing in her first-floor home’s balcony in the Pehlawan Goth area when she was hit by a bullet. The other deceased is said to be an associate of the Liaquat Bangash group,” he added.

“Both the groups enjoy political support or association with influential individuals,” said Gulistan-i-Jauhar SHO Inspector Tahir Ayub.

He said the police had managed to identify the people involved in the clash and efforts were under way to locate and arrest them.

In the evening, contingents of the Rangers and police were deployed in the strife-hit parts of Gulistan-i-Jauhar. Sources said the paramilitary force picked up nearly a dozen people during raids in different areas of the locality.