Prominent cleric Muhammad Idrees gunned down in KP's Charsadda
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CHARSADDA: Renowned cleric and former Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) MPA Maulana Muhammad Idrees was killed on Tuesday after unidentified assailants opened fire on him, police said. Police Personal Relations Officer Safiullah told Dawn that Idrees left for Darul Uloom Noumania from his home in Tarangzai. He said that shortly before he arrived at his destination, armed assailants fired at the vehicle in the Tariqabad Utmanzai area. He said that two officials were also injured in the incident, adding that police had obtained CCTV footage of the incident. The cleric’s body was subsequently shifted to the District Headquarter Hospital. His funeral prayers were offered later in the day in his native Tarangzai area of Charsadda, with strict security arrangements in place and a large number of attendees, including prominent JUI-F leaders. Idrees was the JUI-F district ameer and was considered one of Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s trusted advisers. The deceased’s father-in-law, Maulana Hassan Jan, who had defeated Awami National Party (ANP) leader Abdul Wali Khan in his native Charsadda constituency, was also gunned down by the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) for opposing armed struggle. Meanwhile, KP Inspector General Zulfiqar Hameed took notice of the incident. According to a post on X by KP police, the IG sought a report from the Mardan regional police officer. He also told the official to take the necessary steps to arrest those responsible for the incident. IG Hameed also expressed his condolences to the bereaved family and expressed his resolve to arrest those responsible soon. President Asif Ali Zardari expressed sorrow at the attack and offered condolences to the family of the deceased cleric, state broadcaster PTV reported. “Such cowardly acts cannot demoralise the nation,” the president was quoted as saying. He stressed that the country’s resolve to eradicate terrorism remained “strong and unwavering”. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in a statement, also expres