PESHAWAR: Unknown attackers shot dead a transgender person near the Government College Chowk in Hashtnagri locality of the provincial capital on Tuesday afternoon, the police said.

An official of Gulfat Hussain Shaheed police station identified the slain as Noor Mohammad alias Ubaiday, an Afghan national, who was currently living in the Patang Chowk area of the provincial capital.

The official said it was not immediately clear as to who murdered the transgender, and they had yet to lodge an FIR.

On the other hand, a police statement said unknown motorcyclists opened fire on the transgender person near the Government College Chowk. It said the police personnel shifted the body to hospital for autopsy.

The statement said no identity documents were found on the body. Besides, it said police had collected empties of bullets used in the attack and were also collecting the CCTV footages from the area.

However, a police source told Dawn that an accused identified as Babar Ali opened fire on the transgender person. He said the accused was a partner of the slain and police investigators had also found his pictures in Ubaiday’s room.

This is the second murder of a transgender person in the provincial capital in over a month. Earlier on Nov 10, a transgender individual identified as Ghazal was stabbed to death in the limits of Faqeerabad police station.

Published in Dawn, December 27th, 2023