Armed men shot dead a religious scholar in a suspected targeted attack in Karachi’s Gulistan-i-Jauhar area, said the police.
Maulana Abdul Qayoom Sufi associated with the Sunni Ulema Council was targeted in Karachi’s Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block 9 area by armed men riding pillion on a motorcycle.
The incident occurred at 7am when Maulana Abdul Qayoom Sufi was returning from Fajar prayers.
The deceased was also head of the Noorani Islamic Centre at Jamia Masjid Muhammadia and was associated with prominent religious scholar Mufti Munibur Rehman.
Earlier in the same locality, educationist Syed Khalid Raza was gunned down in what police described as a “targeted attack”.
The victim was the deputy director of the Darul Arqam Schools, Karachi region. He was also the vice chairman of the Federation of Private Schools Pakistan.
The incident took place at Gulistan-i-Jauhar Block-7 near his home.
Following the incident, several schools in Karachi remained closed. The Karachi Private Schools Association announced to keep schools closed in protest.
According to a recent report by the United States Institute of Peace, Pakistan has witnessed a surge in extremism and intolerance of diversity and dissent as the state-sanctioned laws and conservative narratives facilitate religious extremist elements and support their narrative, leaving little space for religious inclusion.
