2 lawyers shot dead by cousin at Lahore sessions court

Lahore, February 20

A Pakistani lawyer allegedly shot dead his two cousins in Lahore’s sessions court on Tuesday over a property issue, police said, the second shooting incident in a month within the premises.

Lahore Senior Superintendent of Police Mubashir Makan told reporters that three cousin lawyers, Kashif, Nadim and Awais, had appeared in a property case before a sessions judge.

“After the hearing they started exchanging harsh words that led to a physical brawl between them. Before police intervened Kashif took out a pistol and opened fire on his cousins--Nadim, 35, and Awais, 26,--leaving them seriously injured,” Makan said.

They were shifted to Mayo Hospital where they were pronounced dead, he said, adding that the alleged killer lawyer had been apprehended by police.

SSP Makan said the cousin lawyers had a property dispute in Shahdara area. They had been in litigation for the last one year or so. He said police were investigating as to how the suspect managed to bring a weapon in the court.

Lahore Bar Association president Malik Arshad condemned the incident and demanded improved security in the courts.

Following the incident, security at the court was tightened. A heavy contingent of police reached the site of the firing, cordoned off the area and conducted a search within the court premises.

This is the second incident of firing at the Lahore sessions court in this month. In the first week of February an undertrial prisoner facing murder charges and a policeman were shot dead by the complainant of the case in the session court. The killer in this case is still at large.

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has ordered authorities to provide fool-proof security for the courts.

The firing incident exposed the security lapses on the premises of the sessions court where a number of undertrial prisoners were brought daily for hearing of the cases. PTI