Pakistan Prosecutor, Zulfikar Ali who was handling the murder case of the former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was shot dead by Gunmen early Friday. The killing of the Prosecutor creates confusion over the politically sensitive issue of Bhutto’s murder, which also allegedly involves Pakistan former military leader, Pervez Musharraf.
Mr. Ali was brutally shot dead by the unknown attackers while he was leaving from his residence situated in the suburbs of the Pakistan capital Islamabad, to visit the court for hearing in which Pervez Musharraf was to seek bail. Musharraf at present is under house arrest.
The first hand reports tell that the assailants fired at the vehicle of Zulfikar Ali while he was on his way to the court. The bodyguard sustained some wounds and a woman who was passing by was killed in the bullet rain. The bodyguard of Mr. Ali managed to attack one of the gunmen, but he flew from the scene in a vehicle.
According to the Doctor who examined the body of Mr. Ali said, he was shot 13 bullets.
Pakistan Prosecutor, Zulfikar Ali was handling high profile cases:
In the case, Mr. Ali was advocating the Federal Investigation Agency, which has put a charge on Musharraf that he has been involved in the conspiracy of Benazir Bhutto’s killing on December 2007, just before the previous elections in Pakistan.
On April 30, while a hearing in the court, Mr. Ali said to reporters that there are “solid evidence” which proves Musharraf’s association with Bhutto’s assassination. He said that the investigators have been successful in unearthing the evidences, which “directly connect the accused” with the killing.
Apart from Bhutto murder case, Mr. Ali was also a prosecutor in the case where seven alleged terrorists from Lashkar -e-Taiba were charged with planning the attacks of Mumbai (India) in November 2008.
The other high profile cases that Mr. Ali was handling included terrorist attack on the military general headquarters in Rawalpindi in October 2009.
According to a U.N. report in 2010, there are strong possibilities of the involvement of the Pakistan’s military and security establishment in the murder of Benazir Bhutto.
The murder of Zulfikar Ali will surely affect the political environment in Pakistan where general elections are to be held on May 11. The campaigning has been spoiled by the Taliban violence over candidates who are from secular parties.
Pervez Musharraf has been restricted from contesting elections, and later court has exercised ban over him from politics for life. He also is accused of the treason charges, but any decision will be reserved until the formation of the new government.
A lawyer who is handling the case of Mr. Musharraf along with others expressed his grief over the killing of Zulfikar Ali and said that killers should be punished for the act.
