Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has demanded a thorough investigation into the sudden death of Saddar Wazirabad police station Station House Officer (SHO) Amir Shahzad. The officer was the complainant of the FIR registered against the attack on Imran Khan and other PTI leaders in Wazirabad last year. The PTI chief and several other leaders were injured when an attacker opened fire near Allahwala Chowk on November 3, 2022, during the long march.
Imran Khan has been demanding an independent and transparent probe into the incident, blaming senior government functionaries, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. In a surprising turn of events, the SHO reportedly died of a heart attack on Sunday amid a deadlock between the PTI chief and the government over suspects and investigations of the assault, as reported by The News.
In a series of tweets, Imran Khan has demanded a proper inquiry into the sudden death of the SHO, who he said was a “critical witness” in exposing the elements involved in the bid on his life. He claimed that the records of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing the incident had also been “tampered with.” He also linked the cop’s demise with the death of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) official Dr Rizwan and other witnesses involved in cases being faced by PM Shehbaz Sharif.
Bhadar, who was the station house officer of Sadar police station in Wazirabad, died of cardiac arrest on Sunday at his house in his native village Bhadar near Kharian town of Gujrat, according to family sources. He was driven to Kharian Combined Military Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead on arrival. Bhadar was the complainant in the case registered against the gun attack on Imran. He had been working at the Sadar police station, where he was posted days before the attack occurred.
After the attack, Imran Khan had blamed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and a high-ranking officer of the Inter-Services Intelligence for planning the incident and attempted to nominate them in the case. Since then, several PTI leaders, including the chairman, have reiterated that the attack was a part of a “well-coordinated” plan executed by at least three shooters to eliminate Imran Khan.
A JIT, formed by the Punjab government, had reportedly concurred with Imran’s claims that the attack was carried out from three different shooting sites. The team, which has been reconstituted twice, was headed by Lahore CCPO Ghulam Mehmood Dogar. But earlier in January, the government formed a new team to probe the attack, a move that was rejected by the PTI. According to the notification, the team was constituted under Section 19(1) of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), 1997.
The sudden death of the SHO has sparked concerns of foul play, with Imran Khan demanding a thorough and independent investigation into the matter. The PTI has been pushing for justice in the case, accusing the government of covering up the truth and protecting the culprits. The death of the SHO has only added fuel to the fire, with the PTI calling for an end to political victimization and justice for the victims of the attack.
