Fifty UK police chiefs urge prime minister to halt early release of PC Harper’s killers

CHAKWAL: A departmental inquiry into the June 10-11 firing incident in Chakwal, in which nine-year-old Australian-Pakistani national Hania Ahmed was killed and her father and brother were seriously injured, has held a Crime Control Department (CCD) constable responsible for opening indiscriminate fire at the family’s car without authorisation. The 200-page inquiry report, submitted to the court of Magistrate Rehana Kausar, states that the accused constable allegedly opened fire on the vehicle “with the intention to kill” innocent civilians, without the permission of his superior officer and beyond the scope of his assigned duty. Hania was killed while her father, Adil Ahmed, and 10-year-old brother, Affan Ahmed, sustained serious bullet injuries in the incident. The incident occurred during the night between June 10 and 11 near the CCD police station in Chakwal. According to police, two armed men were allegedly attempting to rob the Australian-Pakistani family when the CCD constable mistakenly opened fire on their vehicle, believing the suspects were fleeing in it. The inquiry report, however, rejected the constable’s claim that he had fired in self-defence against the alleged robbers. According to the inquiry report, the accused constable told investigators that he was standing near the main gate of the CCD police station when he heard a commotion and came outside. He claimed that he saw a white car parked in the street and two armed men allegedly involved in a robbery. He said one of the suspects fired at him, prompting him to return fire. He further claimed that he took cover behind a wall and that the vehicle then sped towards Islamia Chowk. He allegedly followed the car after taking a lift on a private motorcycle. The inquiry report said Duty Officer Inspector Jahanzeb Khan rejected this account. According to the inspector, the constable fired the official rifle without seeking permission from him or any other senior officer and subsequently pursued the vehicle on a private motorcycle without authorisation. Three other police officials present at the station at the time also reportedly corroborated the inspector’s statement. The inquiry team concluded that the constable’s claim that he had fired at the alleged robbers in self-defence was contrary to the facts established during the investigation. According to the report, investigators recovered 14 pistol bullet casings and 13 casings from a Kalashnikov-type weapon from the scene. Statements of 34 witnesses have been incorporated into the inquiry report, including that of eyewitness Ahmed Nawaz, a resident of Chakwal’s Circular Road area, where the incident took place. Nawaz told investigators that he was returning after attending a funeral prayer when, upon reaching the CCD police station, he saw an armed constable carrying a Kalashnikov fire repeatedly at a car travelling ahead. He later learned that the family travelling in the vehicle was related to him. The inquiry report also states that the final opinion of the Punjab Forensic Science Agency regarding the bullets fired from the weapons, the bullets recovered from Hania, Adil and Affan, and the blood samples is still awaited. A police officer said the formal trial in the case is expected to commence in September following the August judicial recess. The inquiry report identifies the two alleged robbers as Muhammad Abbas and Muhammad Fayyaz. Police said both were previously involved in criminal cases, with Abbas facing 15 cases and Fayyaz 12. According to the CCD, both men were killed on the night of June 11 in an alleged police encounter in Chakwal. Police claimed they were killed by firing from their own accomplices. Post-mortem reports, however, showed that both men had sustained gunshot wounds to the head. A CCD official said Abbas had also been arrested in connection with two robbery cases in Chakwal in 2021. The inquiry report states that before allegedly targeting the Australian-Pakistani family, the two suspects had robbed two shops. Following their deaths, the shop owners and a woman who had allegedly been robbed of her gold earrings identified them from photographs, according to the report. Adil Ahmed, a resident of Dhudial village in Chakwal, has been living in Perth, Australia, with his family for several years. He is an engineer, while his wife is a dentist. Hania was a Year 4 student at the Australian Islamic College in Perth. The family had arrived in Pakistan in May. Adil and his wife subsequently travelled to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj, leaving their children with their grandparents. They returned from Saudi Arabia on June 10. On the same day, the family rented a car from a rent-a-car business in Dhudial for 10 days to travel during their stay in Pakistan. That night, Adil’s father-in-law, retired Colonel Muhammad Khan, hosted a dinner at his residence. The family left for home in the rented vehicle after attending the gathering, after which the firing incident occurred. According to Hania’s post-mortem report, the nine-year-old suffered 11 injury marks on different parts of her body, including bullet wounds. Doctors who conducted the post-mortem examination concluded that she died from massive blood loss caused by deep firearm injuries.

Unofficial and provisional results have started coming in following the completion of polling for the second phase of the 2026 Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly elections. Early results indicate that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has secured victory on two refugee constituencies, while vote counting continues across the remaining seats. Polling was held for eight constituencies in the Muzaffarabad Division and 12 refugee seats reserved for Kashmiri migrants living in different cities across Pakistan. Voting in the Muzaffarabad Division began at 8:00 a.m. and, due to high voter turnout, the Election Commission extended polling by one hour until 6:00 p.m. Polling for the refugee constituencies concluded at 5:00 p.m. Early Results from Muzaffarabad Division In LA-25 Neelum Valley-I, with results from 10 of 143 polling stations, PML-N candidate Shah Ghulam Qadir was leading with 1,364 votes, followed by Abid Afzal of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference with 951 votes. In LA-26 Neelum Valley-II, after results from 8 of 135 polling stations, PPP candidate Mian Abdul Waheed led with 1,157 votes, while PML-N’s Shah Ghulam Qadir had 940 votes. In LA-29 Muzaffarabad-III, results from 2 of 138 polling stations showed Barrister Iftikhar Ali Gilani of PML-N leading with 379 votes, ahead of PPP’s Sardar Mukhtar Khan, who secured 353 votes. In LA-30 Muzaffarabad-IV, PML-N’s Mustafa Bashir Abbasi was ahead with 247 votes, while PPP’s Mubashir Munir Awan had 206 votes, according to results from 2 of 129 polling stations. In LA-31 Muzaffarabad-V, PML-N candidate Saqib Majeed Raja led with 2,934 votes, while PPP’s Chaudhry Latif Akbar received 1,660 votes, based on results from 14 of 249 polling stations. In LA-32 Muzaffarabad-VI, former AJK Prime Minister Raja Muhammad Farooq Haider of PML-N was narrowly ahead with 892 votes, while PPP candidate Sahibzada Muhammad Ashfaq Zafar had 871 votes, according to results from 5 of 163 polling stations. In LA-33 Muzaffarabad-VII, PPP candidate Diwan Ali Khan Qamar Chughtai was leading with 1,349 votes, followed by PML-N’s Mian Muhammad Rashid, who secured 1,029 votes after counting at 7 of 155 polling stations. Refugee Seats The first complete unofficial results declared PML-N victorious in two refugee constituencies. In LA-43 Kashmir Valley-IV, PML-N’s Muhammad Yasin Lone won the seat with 1,276 votes, defeating PPP candidate Javed Butt, who received 563 votes. In LA-44 Kashmir Valley-V, PML-N’s Muhammad Ahmad Raza Qadri was declared the winner with 1,700 votes, while Mehr-un-Nisa of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference secured 650 votes. Vote Counting Continues In LA-34 Jammu-I, PML-N’s Nasir Hussain Dar was leading with 1,690 votes after results from 51 of 131 polling stations, while independent candidate Raja Riaz Ahmad had 741 votes. In LA-35 Jammu-II, PML-N’s Chaudhry Muhammad Ismail maintained a commanding lead with 18,788 votes, followed by independent candidate Sardar Muhammad Ghayas with 5,041 votes, based on results from 100 of 142 polling stations. In LA-36 Jammu-III, PML-N’s Muhammad Ahsan Raza led with 10,002 votes, while PPP’s Ahsan Ismail had 4,756 votes after counting at 50 of 140 polling stations. In LA-37 Jammu-IV, PML-N candidate Maryam Javed was ahead with 19,014 votes, while independent candidate Usman Aleem had 14,734 votes, according to results from 121 of 185 polling stations. In LA-38 Jammu-V, PML-N’s Zeeshan Ali was leading with 5,524 votes, narrowly ahead of Muhammad Akbar Chaudhry of the Muslim League AJK, who had 4,988 votes, based on results from 49 of 115 polling stations. In LA-39 Jammu-VI, PML-N’s Raja Muhammad Siddique secured 3,176 votes, while PPP’s Chaudhry Fakhar Zaman followed with 945 votes after counting at 41 of 157 polling stations. In LA-40 Kashmir Valley-I, PPP candidate Aamir Abdul Ghaffar led with 1,178 votes, while PML-N’s Muhammad Naeem Khan had 65 votes, according to results from 23 of 47 polling stations. In LA-41 Kashmir Valley-II, PML-N’s Muhammad Aamir Shah was ahead with 922 votes, while independent candidate Saba Diwan received 556 votes after counting at 13 of 19 polling stations. In LA-42 Kashmir Valley-III, PML-N candidate Syed Shaukat Ali Shah led with 1,326 votes, followed by PPP’s Muhammad Asim Sharif with 682 votes after results from 13 of 43 polling stations. In LA-45 Kashmir Valley-VI, PPP’s Abdul Majid Khan was leading with 2,444 votes, while Khawaja Muhammad Dilawar of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference had 562 votes, according to results from 15 of 41 polling stations. The Election Commission had established 1,483 polling stations across the Muzaffarabad Division. Polling in LA-27 Muzaffarabad-II was postponed because of severe weather and landslides. Voting for the refugee constituencies was held in several cities across Pakistan. Polling for Jammu-I and Kashmir Valley-I took place in Karachi, while Rawalpindi and Islamabad hosted polling for LA-43 Kashmir Valley-IV, LA-44 Kashmir Valley-V, and LA-39 Jammu-VI. Vote counting is continuing, and official results are expected after the completion of the counting process.