Bangalore: Urdu weekly editor murdered at office in broad daylight

Daijiworld Media Network – Bangalore (SP)

Bangalore, Jul 4: Hafiz Shamsul Hudah (64), editor of Urdu weekly, ‘Makhzan’, which is being published from the city, was killed at his office at Tannery Road here in broad daylight on Wednesday July 3. His throat was slit by the culprits when he was alone at the office in the morning. The area falls under Devara Jeevana Halli (D J Halli) police station limits.

Hafiz was a resident of Bamboo Bazaar in Shivajinagar in the city. On Wednesday, he had left his home early morning, and arrived at the office of the publication at around 7.30 am.  In addition to bringing out the said Urdu daily, Hafiz also was a noted social worker. He operated Al-Quds Minorities Credit Cooperative Society for the benefit of backward families, and functioned as its president.

Unknown killers entered his office in the morning, perhaps knowing fully well that he was alone at the office, and decamped after slicing his throat. A lady employee of the office, who arrived at 10 am, found that door of the editor’s office was closed, and hence, started working in the first floor of the office after opening it by using a key she had with her. Another employee named Mansoor, who works as a computer operator, came there at about 10.30 am, and entered the editor’s room to find that Hafiz was lying in a pool of blood.

The police rushed to the spot and made enquiries. It is learnt that no plausible reasons for murder could be found during their questioning so far.  It is alleged that some money kept in the office was stolen. Exact amount of the theft is as yet unknown. The police have gathered information that Hafiz was in the habit of arriving at the office every day at 7.30 am and beginning his work after going through the newspapers.

The police have observed that there were no other wounds on the body of Hafiz except the throat region. None of the shops or establishments on the road had opened for business when the incident occurred, and no closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras were fitted in any of the shops and offices nearby, the police said. The road also does not have any traffic police CCTV.

A complaint was filed in D J Halli police station. It is said that Hafiz used to receive threatening calls now and then, and he had disclosed this matter to the office staff and family members. However, as he did not attach too much importance to these calls, he had not kept the police informed about these calls, it is learnt.

On the other angle, there is information that some members of the above cooperative society had differences over alleged irregularities committed in its affairs recently. The police at present are proceeding on the notion that these differences would have culminated in the murder of Hafiz.

Additional commissioner of police, Kamal Panth, guessed that the murder would have been committed between 7.30 and 10 am on Wednesday. He pins hopes of getting some information from the post mortem report.

A friend of Hafiz, named Ibrahim Khan, noted that Hafiz, a skilled writer, had been jailed during the emergency, and that he had good connections with a number of national level leaders of the country. It is learnt that Hafiz had no children, and hence the couple lived with his elder brother’s family.