PUNJAB: A doctor belonging to the Ahmadi community was gunned down while his father and two uncles were injured when a boy opened fire on them in their home in Punjab’s Nankana Sahib district on Friday.
According to Police sources, the boy opened fire on them when the family was offering prayers on Friday afternoon at their house in Murh Balochan area of Nankana.
Dr Tahir Mahmood, aged 31, suffered bullet injuries and fell on the ground, while his family members rushed to the door on hearing the gunshots also wounded, police added.
Police officials said the suspect also opened fire on the deceased’s father, Tariq, and uncles Saeed and Tayyab. Soon after the incident locals gathered at the scene and apprehended the attacker.
The injured were taken to a nearby hospital where Dr Mahmood succumbed to his wounds while his father was in critical condition at the hospital. The deceased’s two uncles sustained bullet injuries in their legs.
Saddar Sanghla Station House Officer (SHO) Muhammad Shamshair said the accused was taken into custody who confessed to having attacked the family over religious differences.
SHO Shamshair said an investigation team was formed that will thoroughly probe the incident and will also check whether the suspect had attacked the house acting on his own or he was following somebody’s directions.
The Ahmadi community’s spokesperson confirmed that the incident took place when the members of the family were gathered for prayers inside their home.
“Ahmadis are not even secure inside their homes. They cannot perform their religious obligations inside the four walls of their home,” the spokesperson said. He added Ahmadis were being murdered at their doorsteps but the government had failed to provide them with any protection.
Fatal attack on a house of Ahmadi in Murh Balochan, district Nankana Sahib. An Ahmadi Dr Tahir Ahmed age 31 died as a result while his father is in critical condition fighting for his life. Two other members of the same family who gathered for prayer are injured. pic.twitter.com/50vcTfx56I
— Saleem ud Din (@SaleemudDinAA) November 20, 2020
Attacks targeting members of the Ahmadiya community have seen an uptick in the country. Earlier, an Ahmadi professor was killed in a targeted attack in Peshawar, allegedly over his religious beliefs.
In July 2020, an American national, Tahir Naseem, was gunned by a boy in a Peshawar court. It later turned out that the deceased had reportedly left the Ahmadi community. On August 12, an Ahmadi trader was shot dead by attackers in Peshawar’s Gulbahar area.
