It was on the second day of Eidul Azha – July 11, 2022 – that a 35-year-old ordinary member, later identified as Bilal Kaka, was murdered. He belonged to the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) of Mustafa Kamal. The murder took place at the Super Salateen Hotel off Hyderabad Bypass near Wadhu Wah, allegedly by restaurateurs of Afghan origin. Police said that it had arrested the main murder accused named Afzal Khan. Six days have passed but there has been a deafening silence on the issue by leaders of the main political parties. Serious concerns have been expressed over the fact that apart from Hyderabad, the violence has now spread to areas in Karachi, where the Pakhtun population lives.
The incident has deteriorated into the nationalistic politics. There has been a rapid increase in linguistic violence. The dispute was initially between two individuals, but it was given a linguistic twist. As a result, two more persons have lost their lives, and many more have been injured. On Friday, July 15, there were protests in various cities of the country, outside of Sindh. After getting disappointed by the leadership of political and religious parties, some Pakhtun leaders have come forward in their individual capacities. They have made contacts with the nationalistic parties of Sindh, to cool down the matters. They have taken out rallies of “Sindhi-Pakhtun bhai bhai”. However, peace has not been restored so far.
On social media, a renewed series of hatred can be witnessed. On July 15, violence erupted in Sohrab Goth, which is the most congested area with the Pakhtun population. The other day, a strong statement was issued by Irfanullah Khan Marwat, a member of Sindh Assembly belonging to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Our readers may recall that Irfanullah is the son-in-law of former president Ghulam Ishaq Khan, who belonged to Bannu. In his video message, Irfanullah demanded an immediate end to violence against Pakhtuns, otherwise the Pakhtuns will not take the insults lying down. This has given some courage to the Pakhtuns.