News
Sunday, September 19, 2010
British police seeks Imran Farooq’s killer* Officers go door to door seeking witnesses to resolve mystery
LONDON: British police officers went door to door seeking witnesses on Saturday in an attempt to resolve the mystery surrounding the killing of Imran Farooq whose death sparked rioting in Karachi. Scotland Yard said that 50-year-old Imran Farooq was stabbed and beaten to death in broad daylight outside his home in Edgware, a quiet suburban area in north London. Farooq was a prominent member of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and news of his death sparked a series of arson attacks in Karachi, where the party is the largest member of the city’s ruling coalition.
Police said on Saturday it was appealing for witnesses and handing out posters in an effort to get more information on the slaying. The MQM is an important member of the federal government in Islamabad, and the slaying could have implications for national political stability, especially if the MQM accuses its rivals of being involved.
Karachi was hit by rioting in the wake of Farooq’s death, with gangs torching vehicles and firing weapons. Farooq had been living in a self-imposed exile in Britain since he fled Pakistan along with MQM chief Altaf Hussain in 1992.
Hussain, who regularly addresses large gatherings in Karachi via telephone link, recently appeared to suggest that the country’s army should rise up against the civilian government, angering his party’s federal coalition partners, including the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).
MQM’s leadership says the party considers Farooq’s slaying a reaction to those statements.
The investigation of Farooq’s assassination has been handed over to the British anti-terrorism squad, which with their already constituted 20-member team will continue collecting further evidence.
Anti-terrorism squad officers, who are specially hired to investigate high-profile political murders, interviewed Farooq’s widow and questioned her about the life of her husband, her friends and enemies, in detail. Scotland Yard had also obtained the call record of the victim’s mobile phone, and the calls made on the assassination day were being checked. agencies
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk