RAWALPINDI: Racecourse Station House Officer (SHO) Inspector Mian Imran was martyred in a targeted attack by unidentified motorcyclists on Sunday afternoon.

His father Mian Mohammad Abbas also embraced martyrdom in an encounter with a gang of robbers in July 1990 when he was associated with the police as a sub-inspector (SI) and posted to the RA Bazaar police station.

On Sunday, unidentified motorcycle riders opened fire on the SHO on the main road opposite to the gymkhana. The official residence of the city police officer (CPO) is located across the road where police guards are always deployed.

The SHO along with his wife and two children was going to his residence in the Police Lines Headquarters in his car with tinted window glasses.

Initial police investigation showed that the two motorcycle riders, who were probably chasing the car, pulled up on the right side of the vehicle and fired one shot on the SHO who was on the driving seat.

“The gunshot proved fatal,” a police spokesman said.

Immediately after the attack took place, the injured SHO was rushed to hospital by his wife. However, he embraced martyrdom before reaching the hospital.

The martyred inspector was born in 1979 and joined the police in July 1990. He is survived by his widow, two sons and a daughter.

His funeral prayer will be offered at the Police Lines Headquarters at 10am on Monday.

Meanwhile, police officers, forensic experts, Special Branch and Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) officials reached the scene and collected evidence.

The body was later shifted to the District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital for postmortem.

Police sources said Mian Imran had been in distress for several days and was advised to take precautions while going out of his house or office.The killing of the SHO has been linked to continuous crackdowns on criminal elements operating in the Racecourse area.

The motive behind the targeted killing is unclear as the investigation is in early stages, said a police official.

Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2021