A clash between workers of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) in the Nazimabad No 2 area late Sunday has resulted in the death of a 48-year-old man, identified as Faraz, and left another person injured.
The incident occurred amidst the heightened political activities leading up to the February 8 elections, with political parties engaging in canvassing, public gatherings, and corner meetings to mobilize their supporters, according to local police reports.
Violence erupted between the workers of the two political factions, with unidentified individuals setting two vehicles ablaze during the clash. A video capturing the incident surfaced, revealing activists from both parties hurling chairs at each other in a disturbing display of animosity.
Abbasi Shaheed Hospital confirmed that Faraz was brought in dead, succumbing to a fatal bullet wound to his head. MQM-Pakistan Rabita Committee member Taha Siddiqui claimed that PPP workers initiated the violence by opening fire at their office, resulting in the death of the UC-incharge.
“The Peoples Party [PPP] cannot occupy the city through terrorism,” Siddiqui alleged, addressing the media outside the hospital.
In a statement issued by MQM-Pakistan, a spokesperson claimed that the altercation began when PPP workers attempted to remove their party's flag. Although the dispute was initially settled, PPP workers allegedly returned after two hours with armed guards, leading to a second round of violence that claimed Faraz's life.
MQM-Pakistan senior leader Mustafa Kamal, addressing a press conference, accused PPP leader Asim Hussain of orchestrating the attack on MQM-P workers. Kamal asserted that MQM-P workers were unarmed and did not retaliate with violence.
“I am warning for the last time that I will not let my workers even suffer a single scratch,” Kamal declared.
This incident follows a previous clash in December last year when MQM-P claimed that three of its workers were shot dead and others injured by PPP members during an attack on their election office in Karachi's Machar Colony.
Police, however, had reported the clash as involving "two groups," resulting in three casualties.
