Talha Ali, a 16-year-old boy, fatally shot when police opened fire on a vehicle. Photo: Express
PESHAWAR:
A 16-year-old boy was fatally shot when police opened fire on a vehicle that failed to stop at a check post in Hayatabad’s Industrial Road area, sparking outrage among locals and triggering a roadblock protest by the victim’s family.
According to police and family accounts, the incident occurred when the teenager, identified as Talha Ali, son of Manzoor Ali, a resident of Safaid Dheri, was returning from shopping in Jamrud Industrial Area along with friends Razi Khan (resident of Tehkal) and Fawad (resident of Afghanistan, currently in Academy Town).
The group was traveling in a vehicle when police signaled them to stop at a checkpoint on Industrial Road. The vehicle did not stop, prompting officers to open fire in pursuit. Talha Ali was hit and died on the spot while the vehicle sustained damage.
A bystander, a girl named Iqra, daughter of Akhtar Nawaz, a resident of Regi Lalma, was also injured in the crossfire.
The victim’s brother, Zulfiqar Ali, filed an FIR at the relevant police station and accused the police of the murder. Police immediately registered a case against constable Faisal Rahman, who was arrested in connection with the incident.
Authorities said one of the residents, Razi Khan, is a wanted suspect in murder and other cases at Tehkal police station. He was arrested on the spot.
After the shooting, grieving family members and supporters took the body to the police station and later placed it on the road in Hayatabad, staging a protest and shouting anti-police slogans. Protesters refused to remove the body until a case was filed against those responsible for the firing.
Senior police officials assured the protesters that an FIR had been lodged, leading to the dispersal of the crowd after several hours.
CCPO Peshawar Dr. Mian Saeed Ahmed took notice of the incident and appointed SP Cantt Abdullah Ihsan as inquiry officer to investigate the circumstances and submit a detailed report.
The incident has once again raised questions about police procedures during car chases and checkpoints in the provincial capital.
