A university student was killed while shooting two thieves near New Sabzi Mandi on Superhighway in the early hours of Wednesday morning, according to police and family members.
On Tuesday, Sheikh Muhammad Nihal, 22, and his uncle, Sheikh Muhammad Ayaz, were riding their motorcycle home from a late-night supper in North Nazimabad. According to SITE-Superhighway Station House Officer (SHO) Zulfiqar Bhangwar, the couple was stopped by armed muggers, who were also riding a motorcycle near Jamali Pul.
Nihal, who was carrying a legal pistol, pulled it and engaged in a gunfight with the attackers. The subsequent exchange of gunfire resulted in gunshot wounds to both accused, Nihal and his uncle.
Police verified that both muggers and Nihal died from their injuries on the spot. Sheikh Ayaz was taken to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, where medical professionals indicated that he was in stable condition despite a gunshot wound to his hand.
Sheikh Muhammad Nihal, a bright architecture student at Nazeer Husain University, was his parents’ only child. His burial, conducted later in the day in a mosque in North Nazimabad, was filled with moving images of sadness and loss.
A grieved uncle of the victim decried the city’s endemic street violence and expressed his grief over his nephew’s death. “The city has been left at the mercy of armed robbers,” he complained.
The event garnered widespread notice, and Ali Khurshidi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly, attended the burial. Khurshidi expressed worry about the alarming rise in street crime and fatalities affecting innocent individuals. He asked the governor and other relevant authorities to act quickly and decisively to tackle Karachi’s escalating street crime problem.
Statistics show a disturbing trend: 68 civilians were reportedly shot dead by thieves in Karachi during the first five months of 2019. However, police records show that the number is 52.
Maria Ghanchi