Transgender person shot dead, another injured in Peshawar attack

Published September 9, 2020
The bodies of the victims were rushed to the Khyber Teaching Hospital, where doctors pronounced one dead. — Reuters/File
The bodies of the victims were rushed to the Khyber Teaching Hospital, where doctors pronounced one dead. — Reuters/File

A transgender person was killed and another was injured from gunshots by unidentified men in Peshawar's Tehkal area, police said on Wednesday.

Both victims were rushed to the Khyber Teaching Hospital, where doctors pronounced Shakeel, aka Gul Panra, dead. The other victim, identified as Tariq alias Chahat, is under treatment.

The body of Gul Panra has been sent for an autopsy, officials said.

A first information report of the incident has been filed, with Chahat as the complainant.

According to the FIR, a group of transgender persons had gone to perform at a wedding function and were preparing to leave when unknown people opened fire on them. The report further said that the victim would be able to identify those involved in the shooting.

The motive behind the shooting is not yet clear, Superintendent of Police of Cantt Hassan Jahangir Wattoo said, adding that an investigation is underway.

Capital City Police Officer Mohammad Ali Gandapur also took notice of the incident and constituted a special team, which will be headed by SP Wattoo, to investigate and arrest the those responsible.

So far, no arrests have been been made, Wattoo said.

The shooting sparked anger on social media and the hashtag 'Justice for Gulpanra' was among the top trends on Twitter in Pakistan.

Despite multiple laws passed to protect them, the transgender community in Pakistan remains vulnerable to attacks.

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