PESHAWAR – A religious scholar and leader of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) was shot dead in Dera Ismail Khan city of violence-torn Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, early today.
According to police, Maulana Syed Ataullah Shah was heading home after offering morning prayer at Ayesha Siddiqa mosque, where he was gunned down by unknown assailants.
Shah was pronounced dead on the spot while the attackers managed to flee the scene. The dead body was shifted to hospital and the police launched a search operation to nab the murderers.
The deceased was considered to be a prominent leader of JUI Dera and a close aide of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
He originally belonged to Panyala, but was residing in D.I. Khan city for past several years.
