QUETTA: Professor Dr Saba Dashtiyari, a senior member of the faculty of University of Balochistan, was gunned down by some unidentified armed men on the Sariab Road in the provincial capital on Wednesday afternoon.
The police said that Prof Dashtiyari of the Islamic Studies department of UoB was out for an evening walk on the main Sariab Road when two unidentified armed men, riding a motorcycle, appeared and opened fire on him. Dr Dashtiyari sustained multiple bullet wounds and succumbed to his injuries on the spot. The police reached the spot and shifted the body to the Civil Hospital.
A large number of teachers and students of the UoB reached the Civil Hospital and mourned the killing of Dr Dashtiari. Later, the body was dispatched to Karachi for burial.
Dr Dashtiyari was associated with the UoB for the last three decades. He was born in 1953 in Lyari area of Karachi. After completing his primary and higher education from Karachi, he joined the UoB and his association with the varsity lasted till his death.
The friends of Dr Dashtiyari remember him as a humble, sociable and down to earth human being, who had a good circle of friends in the university and outside. He had authored several books and laid the foundation of a premier Balochi language academy in Karachi.
Meanwhile, the UoB has been closed for three days from today (Thursday) to mourn the killing of Professor Dashtiyari. Balochistan and Pashtoon nationalists parties strongly condemned the killing. Pashtoonkhawa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) in a press statement strongly condemned the killing.
Balochistan Governor Nawab Zulfiqar Ali Magsi has expressed grief and sorrow over the killing of Dr Dashtiyari. In a statement, the governor prayed that may Allah almighty rest the departed soul in eternal peace and give courage to the bereaved family to bear the tragic loss.