ISLAMABAD -  After the assassination of former prime minister and Pakistan People’s Party leader Benazir Bhutto at Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi in 2007, a gallant prosecutor also lost his life later in an effort to bring the culprits to justice.

Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) officer Chaudhary Zulfiqar Ali, who was the prosecutor in the Benazir Bhutto murder case, was assassinated on May 4, 2013, while coming out of his residence in Islamabad to go to the anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Rawalpindi for a hearing in connection with the murder case. He was the FIA prosecutor investigating the murder case. Chaudhary Zulfiqar was ambushed in G-9 Sector. He was also the top prosecutor in the Mumbai attacks case.

According to reports, Chaudhry Zulfikar was scheduled to submit a charge-sheet in the Rawalpindi ATC against former president Pervez Musharraf in connection with the Benazir murder case. The attackers riding a motorcycle sprayed his car with bullets and fatally injured the prosecutor who later died at a hospital. A pedestrian woman had also lost her life after his out-of-control car hit her.

One of Chaudhary’s bodyguards, Frontier Constabulary constable, Farman Ali, was also injured in the cross-fire. Later, the attackers fled the scene. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the shooting. Chaudhry Zulfiqar, who hailed from a town in Kotha Sawaria near Jhelum, is survived by his wife and sons Chaudhry Nisar and Chaudhry Qamar.

The fingers for the killing of the top prosecutor were pointed at various quarters including jihadist organizations.

Chaudhary was the main person who pushed the ATC to expedite proceedings against five members of the Pakistani Taliban, who were detained in connection with the murder case, have now been acquitted of the charges and set free by the court.

According to the reports, the prosecutor had also initiated to arrest former dictator Musharraf in the same case, a move that might have angered some quarters in the establishment. Reports said that Chaudhary Zulfiqar was also close to submitting a final evidence against seven members of the Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group, being held in connection with the 2008 Mumbai killings. Musharraf had blamed BB’s killing on Pakistani Taliban’s former chief Baitullah Mehsud. Chaudhary Zulfiqar had been receiving threats from unknown quarters before he was gunned down.

Later in September 2013, the murder case of Chaudhary Zulfiqar was ‘resolved’ with the disclosure that the body buried at the residence of Hammad Adil, a prime accused in the Bhara Kahu bombing case, was of the assassin of the FIA prosecutor. The police claimed that the body belonged to terrorist Haris, who had attacked Chaudhry Zulfiqar and he (Haris) was killed in a retaliatory fire by the FC guards. Hammad buried Haris in the courtyard of his house. The other accused booked in the murder case of Chaudhry Zulfiqar was Umar Abdullah.

TAHIR NIAZ