On Thursday, Sindh Information Minister Saeed Ghani said that Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) worker Aslam Khan died of a heart attack the day before, rather than police assault.
On Wednesday, police used baton charges and shelling on MQM-P workers protesting against the newly passed amendments to the Sindh Local Government Act of 2013. Several people were injured, including women and children, and many were taken into custody.
Ghani said there should not have been any police brutality at the MQM-P march yesterday, speaking at a press conference in Karachi.
“Teams in the PSL are staying in hotels in the red zone, and they had to leave. The police attempted to communicate with the protestors, but they refused to listen, according to the police “Added he.
Ghani stated that MP Sadaqat Hussain and a group of four to five people attacked police officers first, and only then did the force respond.
The MQM-P worker did not die as a result of police torture, according to the provincial communications minister. “After becoming ill, he was sent to a hospital in the Federal B. Area. Why wasn’t he taken to the NICVD or JPMC? I humbly suggest that his family members agree to a post-mortem examination so that the true cause of death can be determined.”
He said three individuals, including MPA Sadaqat, were taken to JPMC and later released after receiving medical treatment. He also called the statements made by MQM-P leaders Amir Khan and Khalid Maqbool following the incident “inappropriate.”
“The MQM-P is attempting to stir ethnic tensions in the city… Such words, I hope, will not be taken seriously by the people of Karachi “Added he.
