PESHAWAR: The Dera Ismail Khan police on Monday said that the third wife of the slain Awami National Party’s (ANP) election candidate Umar Khitab Sherani has been arrested for killing her husband a day before election.
Addressing a news conference, the District Police Officer (DPO) Najamul Hasnain Liaqat said that after conducting prob, it was found that Sherani’s murder has nothing to with terrorism but he was killed over family dispute. However, he did not provide further details about the nature of the despite.
Read more: A day before polls, ANP candidate Umar Khitab shot killed in DI Khan
The police officer informed that besides Anita, two other accused called Abdul Hakim, a resident of South Waziristan and Shafiq Afghani have also been arrested and they also confessed to have committed the crime. All the three accused were presented before the media during the press conference. The police informed that the weapon used in the crime was also recovered from their possession.
Liaqat informed that they are conducting further investigation into case. The DPO said that the accused have been traced from several evidence including mobile phones data. He said that one of the accused is from South Waziristan, who is believed to be the prime accused in the case.
Sherani was killed a day before the local government elections on 18 December outside his residence. He was the president of the Awami National Party in Dera Ismail Khan. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mehmood Khan took notice of the tragedy and directed the police to submit report.
The ANP spokesperson Samar Haroon Bilour had strongly condemned the murder of yet another ANP leader and demanded justice. Bilour wrote on twitter, “We want justice now. This cannot go on anymore.” The ANP Senior Vice President Amir Haider Hoti has said that the rival political parties were involved in the murder.
Hasnain Liaqat said that the murder o election candidate of one of the major political party a day before the election was challenge for the police. Liaqat said that the incident has led to the postponement of the election by the Election Commission and serious questions were raised on the law and order situation in the district.
DSP Headquarters Asghar Ali Shah, DSP Saddar Hafiz Muhammad Adnan, DSP City Abdul Rahim Gandapur, Inspector Pervez Shah and SHO Cantt Azeem Wazir were also present during the occasion.