A Pakistan “scholar”, who was accused of helping Pakistan‘s ISI spy agency in kidnapping former Indian Navy officer Kulbhushan Jadhav from Iran, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Balochistan on Friday night, media reports said.
Mufti Shah Meer Aziz was a leading religious scholar in Balochistan who had survived two earlier attempts on his life, reported local media.
They reportedly gunned down Meer from motorcycles as he was leaving a local mosque in Turbat after his night prayers, according to reports.
He was shot multiple times at point-blank range and died at the hospital on Friday.
Mufti Shah Meer Aziz was a member of the Jamiat Ulema Islam (JUI) party.
Another version said he was killed while offering prayer.
“Mufti Shah Meer Aziz was praying inside the mosque. One attacker barged inside the mosque and another was standing at the exit,” District Police Officer (DPO) Rashid-ur-Rehman Zehri told Arab News.
“Mufti Shah Meer Aziz was killed on the spot, and the prayer leader of the mosque was injured,” he said.
Zehri said the incident appeared to be an instance of a targeted attack.
No group has claimed responsibility for the incident so far.
“Police have initiated investigation and hunt for the attackers,” he added.
Police said this was the second attack on JuI members in Balochistan within a week.
Two JUI members, Wadera Ghulam Sarwar and Molvi Amanullah, were killed in a gun attack in Balochistan’s Khuzdar district on March 2, reported Arab News.
Kulbhusan Jadhav Case
Kulbhushan Jadhav ran a business in Iran’s Chabahar after taking premature retirement from the Indian Navy.
He is on death row in Pakistan after being convicted of spying by a military court in 2017.
India condemned the verdict and accused Islamabad of not allowing a fair trial.
The International Court of Justice halted his execution in 2019, asking Pakistan to review his conviction and grant him consular access.
Jadhav was kidnapped from near the Iran-Pakistan border in 2016 and handed over to the Pakistani army. He is currently lodged in a Pakistani prison.
According to reports, Mullah Omar Irani, a member of Jaish al-Adl who played a key role in kidnapping Jadhav, was allegedly shot dead by ISI operatives in Turbat in 2020.
In 2021, Pakistan adopted a bill to allow Jadhav to appeal his conviction, but India said the law had the same “shortcomings” as previous legislation and “failed” to create an atmosphere that would ensure a fair trial in this case.
JUI Leader Umrani Killed Last Year
Last year, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) leader Mir Aslam Khan Umrani was shot dead on National Highway in Naseerabad district of Pakistan.
The attack occurred when he was on his way to Dera Murad Jamali.
He died on the spot.
The attackers opened fire on his vehicle.
Pakistan Witnessing Surge In Terror Strikes
Pakistan has been witnessing a spike in terror attacks since 2022 after the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan ended its ceasefire with the government in November of that year.
The recent attacks are taking place in the country at a time when Pakistan is hosting the Champions Trophy, an ICC event.
It is the first time Pakistan is hosting an ICC event since the 1996 World Cup, which it co-hosted with India and Sri Lanka.
Foreign teams were not visiting Pakistan after the gunmen attacked a bus carrying Sri Lankan cricketers in 2009.
India, however, refused to travel to Pakistan to play the 50-over tournament.
The country, which will play the final against New Zealand, played all its matches in Dubai.
(With inputs from IBNS)
