The Supreme Court of Pakistan took Suo Moto notice of renowned journalist Arshad Sharif’s Murder in Kenya.
A five-member bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial conduct a hearing today. Notices were issued to the interior secretary, foreign affairs secretary, information and broadcasting secretary, Federal Investigation Agency director general (DG), Intelligence Bureau DG, and Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists president.
The apex court said the journalist community in the country and the public at large are deeply distressed and are concerned about the death of the senior journalist and are seeking the court’s scrutiny of the matter.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have penned separate letters to the Chief Justice Pakistan asking him to conduct an independent judicial inquiry into the killing of the journalist.
Journalist Arshad Sharif was allegedly killed by Kenyan police after he and his driver had driven through a police checkpoint on the outskirts of Nairobi.
However, an autopsy test showed that Arshad Sharif was shot from far too close a range compared to what was being claimed by Kenyan police. Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah also said journalist Arshad Sharif was killed in a “targeted attack”, stating that no evidence was found to support the narrative that he was shot dead in a case of “mistaken identity”.
“Prima facie, it is a targeted murder as the narrative of ‘mistaken identity’ has not been proven […] and there are many doubts,” he said, adding that further information would only emerge after a detailed investigation was conducted.
Remember that Senior journalist Arshad Sharif was shot dead in Kenya’s Nairobi city on 23 October 2022. After being shot his wife Javeria Siddiqui confirmed the news. Taking to her official Twitter handle, Siddiqui said “I lost friend, husband and my favorite journalist Arshad today, as per police he was shot in Kenya.”
According to Arshad’s former employer ARY News, “Police in Kenya have confirmed his death and have opened an investigation into the accident which likely involved a gun attack.”
He leaves behind five children. The family has asked the media and the general public to refrain from making assumptions and disseminating rumors regarding Arshad Sharif’s death.
Read More : Senior Journalist Arshad Sharif ‘Shot Dead’ in Kenya
