KARACHI, June 22: Three people, including two seminary teachers, on Friday fell victim to the ongoing wave of targeted killings on sectarian and political grounds in the city, police said.

The officials added that both seminary teachers were shot dead on Abul Hasan Ispahani Road as they were returning to the seminary, Idara Maroof-ul-Quran, on a motorbike after attending a Nikah in the early hours.

“Maulana Jamil Qasim, 38, and Anwar Anjum, 30, were intercepted and targeted near Paradise Bakery by gunmen riding a motorbike,” said Sachal SHO Inspector Azhar Iqbal.

“The victims sustained gunshot wounds and died on their way to hospital,” he said.

Police investigators later collected nearly a dozen spent bullet casings of a 9mm pistol from the crime scene.

The intense firing sowed fear in the locality, where several roadside outlets and teashops usually remain open round the clock, compelling traders to pull down shutters.

A heavy contingent of Rangers and police later cordoned off the area.

The police investigators found no reason other than sectarian for the targeted killing. “So far that’s [sectarian] the only reason we have determined. Colleagues and friends of the victims also suspect the same motive and the investigations are expected to move forward along the same lines,” said Inspector Iqbal.

He added that the bodies had been sent to their hometown in Azad Kashmir.

Later during the day, the killing of a Muttahida Qaumi Movement worker near Jodia Bazaar led to the closure of the city’s one of the busiest commercial areas.

Police said Gulraiz Jamal, in his late 20s, was sprayed with bullets in Chaba Gali of Jodia Bazaar.

“The victim was a resident of the same area,” said an official at the Kharadar police station. “He was returning home when two men riding a motorbike targeted him. He was hit by six bullets and died on the spot.”

The police said the victim before joining the MQM was associated with the Sunni Tehrik.

SSP South Asif Ajaz Sheikh confirmed to Dawn that it was an act of targeted killing.

Tension gripped the old city area soon after the killing, causing closure of shops and turning traffic on roads thin. The situation started returning to normality after the sunset.

Body found

The tortured body of a young man was found by a side of Qayyumabad road close to the Korangi Industrial Area in the early hours of Friday, said police.

The victim, in his mid-20s, had been trussed up before being strangled to death, they added.

“The victim was wearing shalwar kameez,” said Korangi Industrial Area SHO Inspector Malik Ayub. “The body has been shifted to the Edhi morgue after medico-legal formalities at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for want of identification.”