Slain Shia leader laid to rest

Syed Salman Haider Rizvi, the general secretary of the Pasban-e-Aza and former president of the Imam Bargah Masjid Khair-ul-Amal, was laid to rest at the Wadi-e-Hussain graveyard on Sunday a day after he was shot dead by unidentified men outside his home in Ancholi.

A large number of people attended his funeral prayers that were held on Shahrah-e-Pakistan. Majlis Wahdat-e- Muslimeen (MWM) Central Deputy Secretary General Syed Hasan Zafar Naqvi led the funeral prayers.

People at the funeral expressed shock and anguish over the killing and urged the government to arrest the culprits and award them exemplary punishment. Talking to the media at the funeral, MWM Sindh leader Allama Baqir Zaidi demanded of the government and law enforcement agencies to arrest the killers of Rizvi within the next 24 hours.

“After other provinces of the country, terrorist activities against the Shia community have also begun in Karachi in a systematic manner,” he said. Rizvi, 43, was the son of the late SM Haider, prominent Shia leader and founder of the Pasban-e-Aza. Apart from the Pasban-e-Aza, the slain activist was also the general secretary of the Ziyarat Karwan Operator.

Rizvi was shot at least three times at least two armed men on a motorcycle, police said. After the firing, he was seriously injured and taken to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.

“Two armed men riding a 125 motorcycle were already following him,” said Samanabad SHO Waqar Qaiser while talking to The News. “As soon as he stopped his Premio car near his residence, the armed motorcyclists fired multiple shots at him.”

Police also seized three empty shells of a 9mm pistol from the crime scene. The empty shells would be sent to the forensic division of the Sindh police for ballistics cross-matching, the SHO said.

The officer added that the victim was killed in an act of target killing. There was no CCTV camera installed at the place where the firing took place. Shops were closed as tension prevailed in the area following the incident. A heavy contingent of the law enforcers, including police and the Rangers, was also deployed in the area to avoid any untoward incident.