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Hoodbhoy family demands blood for blood, decries ‘sluggish’ investigation

By Faraz Khan
November 29, 2019

The family of Nabeel Hoodbhoy, who was gunned down by police officials on November 22, has claimed that the investigation of the case is moving at a very slow pace and vowed that they will not forgive anyone responsible for the murder.

Addressing a news conference at the Karachi Press Club on Thursday, Hoodbhoy’s mother and sister demanded that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah take action against the police officials investigating the case.

The mother said Hoodbhoy was a British national but she was not seeking justice or assistance from the UK. “A sportsman has been killed, but no one is worried about it. I appeal to the chief justice of Pakistan to include this case in the Karachi unrest case,” she added.

“The number of such incidents occurring in District South of the city shows the police are out of control,” she said, adding that the law does not allow any police official to open fire at anyone.

She lamented that the officials who shot her son escaped from the crime scene instead of taking him to the hospital. “No progress has been made in this case,” she complained.

The mother said the police are doing nothing, but she expressed hope that they will get justice from the higher authorities. “I want blood for blood, so this kind of thing does not happen to anyone else. I have lost my only son. I will not pardon anyone.”

She appealed to the CM to form a fair and transparent inquiry committee comprising honest and senior police officers. She said her son was murdered in cold blood.

“This is not an ordinary thing. Give me my son back or give me justice. I will not forgive anyone,” said the upset mother. “A Naya [New] Pakistan is not possible until such incidents continue to occur.”

She said the police are supposed to protect citizens and not kill unarmed people. She again requested the province’s chief executive to take notice of the incident.

Hoodbhoy’s lawyer Sheikh Javed, who was also present on the occasion, said the CCTV footage of the incident showed that the police opened fire on the victim’s stationary car, adding that instead of taking him to the hospital, the officials escaped from the crime scene.

“This is not the first time such an incident has taken place, especially in District South. And they will continue to occur if the people do not raise their voices against such incidents.”

The lawyer claimed that the police are not including anti-terrorism clauses in the case, adding that not even an SP or an SHO have been suspended after the murder. “Nabeel’s parents have lost him. But now they only want justice so that the same thing does not happen to anyone else.”

Three policemen were arrested on the day of the tragedy and a case under the Anti-Terrorism Act was registered against them, following Hoodbhoy’s killing and injuries to his friend Raza Imam near the Cantt Station during the wee hours.

The incident had taken place at around 3:15am on Fatima Jinnah Road as the two friends were travelling in a white car. After they were shot by police officials, Hoodbhoy died on the spot and Imam suffered injuries. The deceased and the injured were taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre.

Senior police officials reached the crime scene and inquired into the incident. The Sindh police chief also took notice of the incident and sought a detailed report from South Zone DIG Sharjeel Kharal. The police chief ordered stern action against the policemen involved in the incident.

According to DIG Kharal, three policemen of the Gizri police station — Sub-Inspector Abdul Ghaffar, Head Constable Aftab and Police Constable Muhammad Ali — were arrested, and District South SSP Sheraz Nazeer, the investigation SSP and the Frere DSP initiated an inquiry into the incident.

The deceased had been a resident of the Hatim Ali Road area while the injured lives in the Cantonment Station area. Imam told the police that he and Hoodbhoy were friends and involved in an import & export business.

He said they were returning from a visit to someone in the Khayaban-e-Badar area when the policemen carrying out snap checking on the intersection of Khayaban-e-Hafiz and Khayaban-e-Mujahid signalled them to stop the car.

“We had a can of beer in our car,” said the injured. “The police asked us where we lived and where we were going, and then asked us to turn on the light in the car, following which Nabeel drove away.”

Imam said Hoodbhoy’s sudden action surprised him and he asked him why he had done so, to which his friend replied that it was the only way to deal with the police.

“A police mobile started chasing us and also fired some aerial shots. We made a turn to Fatima Jinnah Road and stopped the car. After this the officials reached close to us and fired at the driver’s side. The bullet that killed Nabeel also hit me. The policemen escaped after seeing us in a pool of blood.”