A woman was killed over a family dispute on Friday in Azizabad, Rawalpindi.
According to the Race Course police, the woman, who was identified as Safia Begum, was fired upon with a pistol by two motorcyclists at her residence.
Her brother, Hassan Akhter, lodged a complaint with the police, nominating her husband Zafar Iqbal and his three brothers, Khalid Muhammad, Zahar Iqbal and Tahir Iqbal, in the murder case. According to the police, Zafar and Khalid live in the US.
The complainant told the police that his sister had been killed to settle a family dispute centred on the divorce given to Khalid’s daughter, Nadia, by Safia’s son, Ali Sufian.
According to preliminary investigations, the attackers showed up on a motorbike, entered the house and opened fire on her from a point-blank range. She died of a bullet fired at her head, the police said. The police shifted the body to District Headquarters Hospital for autopsy.
Station House Officer Raja Musadiq said that on the complaint of Safia’s brother, a murder case has been filed against her husband and his three brothers. Akthar suspected that Azhar and Tahir were hired by Zafar and Khalid to kill his sister.
The SHO quoted Hassan as saying that after Nadia’s divorce, differences emerged in the family and everyone thought that Safia forced her son to divorce his wife. “The police are investigating the case and the killers will soon be arrested,” he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 1st, 2014.