Asif Ali Zardari praises absconding former SSP Rao Anwar

Backing the former Malir Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Rao Anwar, Pakistan Peoples Party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari praised the absconding police officer by calling him a 'brave child' and claimed that he would not kill anyone without any reason.

During an interview to a private news channel, Zardari called Anwar a 'brave child' who had carried out an operation against Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) during former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's tenure.

He further said that Anwar was the only survivor out of the 54 SHOs, who had carried out an operation against MQM. "Anwar went underground when the MQM returned to power," he said.

Speaking about the extrajudicial murder of Naqeebullah Mehsud and the former SSP's involvement in it, Zardari claimed that Anwar would never kill anyone without any reason. He further said that the report against Anwar was a result of grouping within the police.

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Referring to Anwar using Whatsapp, Zardari said that it was Inspector General of Sindh Police AD Khawaja who had been contacted by Anwar and that he should have taken the matter to the agencies for investigation.

The former SSP is in hiding ever since he tried to flee the country last month. He is wanted in the ‘extra judicial murder’ of 27-year-old Naqeebullah, a native of Waziristan. He was killed, along with three other suspected terrorists, on January 13 in an alleged encounter with a police team headed by Anwar. However, Naqeebullah’s family has claimed that the deceased was innocent and was killed in a ‘fake’ encounter.