BAHAWALPUR: A man allegedly shot dead an eight-year-old schoolboy who resisted his attempted rape in Rukanpur, within the jurisdiction of Tibba Sultanpur police station near Mailsi in Vehari district, on Oct 12.
Reports said Muhammad Ali, a primary school student, went to a neighbouring house to drink water during recess when he was allegedly shot dead in mysterious circumstances.
The killing triggered panic in the area. A heavy police contingent, led by a DSP, and Mailsi Assistant Commissioner Saad Bin Khalid reached the scene after receiving an emergency call. The boy’s body was shifted to Tibba Sultanpur hospital for a postmortem examination.
When contacted, Vehari DPO’s PRO Adnan Tariq told Dawn that the suspect, Ali Raza, allegedly attempted to sexually assault the boy, who put up strong resistance. According to the PRO, the suspect was alone at his house when Muhammad Ali entered to drink water. The suspect allegedly attempted to rape the boy, who raised the alarm, prompting people to rush to the house. Ali Raza grew enraged, opened fire and killed the boy on the spot before fleeing the scene.
The PRO said Tibba Sultanpur police had registered a case under Sections 302 and 377 of the Pakistan Penal Code against the nominated suspect on the complaint of the victim’s father, Tassawar Abbas, a driver by profession.
The suspect had yet to be arrested, and police were making efforts to track him down. The PRO added that police teams, acting on the orders of DPO Vehari Tasawar Iqbal, had conducted raids at his suspected hideouts to arrest him as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, Dawn learnt that Deputy Commissioner Vehari Khalid Javed Goraya had taken serious notice of the killing and ordered an inquiry into the incident.
The DC constituted an inquiry committee headed by Mailsi Assistant Commissioner Saad Bin Khalid, with the district education officer (male) Vehari and District Education Officer (female) Andleab Asghar as members.
The DC directed the committee to complete the inquiry at the earliest and identify the officials, if any, responsible for negligence so that action could be taken against them.
Published in Dawn, October 14th, 2026.
