PESHAWAR - A judge of the Peshawar High Court and his driver received bullet injuries on Thursday morning when unidentified bike riders fired on his vehicle in Hayatabad’s posh area.
According to details, PHC judge Justice Muhammad Ayub Marwat was on his way to the court when unidentified armed assailants riding a bike opened fire on his car in Phase-V area of Hayatabad Township in the morning.
Justice Ayub Marwat received two bullet injuries, one at his right forearm and another above his eye, while his driver, Muhammad Gul, was shot once in the left arm. The judge was rushed to a nearby private hospital where his condition was stated to be out of danger, while the driver was taken to Hayatabad Medical Complex, whose condition was also stable.
Talking to media persons, SP Cantt Wasim Riaz said that a pistol and a Kalashnikov were used in the ambush, adding the victims were out of danger.
He said that Justice Ayub was in his car when he was shot at by unidentified assailants in Hayatabad’s Phase-V area.
“The judge’s car was shot at from all four sides with a pistol and Kalashnikov,” police said. The sources further said that the search operation had been started in the surrounding areas and camera footages were also being collected. The police sources said initial reports suggested that culprits parked their vehicle at some distance and they were on foot when they attacked.
According to media reports, the PHC Chief Justice Waqar Ahmed Seth said the judge was shot in his arm and was out of danger. “I have asked police to apprehend the attackers as soon as possible,” Justice Seth said.
Later, while speaking to media persons, SSP Operations Zahoor Afridi said that two armed men opened fire on the judge’s car. He, however, said that they were investigating why there was no security with the judge at the time as all judges had already been given security.
Justice Ayub Marwat had become judge of the PHC in 2017. Before his elevation, Justice Ayub served as judge of accountability court in Peshawar. Apart from that, he had also served as district and sessions judge and remained posted at different stations. Besides, Justice Ayub also served as registrar of the PHC.
Meanwhile, the KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan has ordered an inquiry into the incident. The KP Bar Council, while condemning the attack on Justice Ayub Marwat, observed strike and demanded immediate arrest of the culprits behind the incident.
It is pertinent to mention here that additional IG and judges van were also targeted at the same place in past.