Ahmad Raza Khan Kasuri

Assassination of Nawab Mohammad Ahmad Kasuri

Kasuri's father was allegedly murdered on the orders of Pakistani Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto in 1974.

Bhutto was later arrested and convicted in 1979 by the Supreme Court of Pakistan. Although formerly acquitted of this alleged murder the “re-filed case shortly after the coup” by Ahmed Raza Qasuri, (Islamics republic of Pakistan- A Modern History by Ian Talbot) came in handy for the dictator Mohammed Zia ul Haq.

Ahmad Raza Khan Kasuri was driving and his father was sitting in the front seat when it was fired upon repeatedly in Shadman, Lahore. Kasuri showed considerable grit and drove his injured father straight to the United Christian Hospital in Gulberg, Lahore after the attack, even though his car had been blown out. He donated blood to try to save his father, but the injuries were too severe and he died that night.

Kasuri was educated at Central Model High School, Lahore and the Government College, Lahore.

On November 11, 1974, Bhutto was awakened by a telephone call. Masood Mahmood, the director-general of Federal Security Force (FSF) was at the other end and told him that Nawab Mohammad Ahmad Kasuri had been killed as his son Ahmad Raza Kasuri drove him and the family after attending a wedding party in Shadman Colony, Lahore. It was past midnight when the car was ambushed from both sides.

Nawab Mohammad Ahmad Kasuri was sitting beside his son Ahmad Raza in the front. The young Kasuri drove the car straight to United Christian Hospital, where Nawab Kasuri was pronounced dead. Although the assailants were not visible, Ahmad Raza alleged that Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was the person behind the murderous attack. The simple reason he mentioned was that he, Ahmad, was dead set against Bhutto’s policies and although elected on a PPP ticket, he had become a member of the opposition party led by Asghar Khan. He was so critical of Bhutto’s policies that he had not signed the 1973 Constitution.

While lodging the FIR at the Ichhra police station, Kasuri recorded every detail of the tragic event, and when asked about the possible culprits behind the attack, Kasuri mentioned the name of Bhutto, despite the police official’s opposition. Kasuri had a reason to suspect Bhutto. During his student life he was bold and outspoken and often argued with his teachers on one point or another. He was even rusticated for one year when he was studying law in 1964. He completed his law and joined law practice. When Bhutto quit the Ayub government, Kasuri was so impressed by his fiery speeches that he joined his party at its launch. Seeing his eagerness and the will to work Bhutto appointed him as a member of the central working committee.

However, Kasuri was an idealist and soon became disillusioned with Bhutto’s pragmatic policies. Despite Bhutto’s strong opposition to attending the National Assembly session summoned at Dhaka on March 3, 1971, Kasuri remained adamant.

Ghulam Mustafa Khar was asked to keep Kasuri from drifting away but that did not work and Kasuri continued criticising Bhutto in the National Assembly. Finally Bhutto wrote to Khar and the chief minister Malik Mairaj Khalid asking why Kasuri had not been ostracized. However, Bhutto underestimated the trouble Kasuri would create. Being a lawyer, Bhutto should have known the consequences of such an FIR; there is no understanding how he took it so lightly and continued work as usual.

On the other hand, Nine days following the assassination of his father, Ahmad Raza Kasuri attended a session of the National Assembly on November 20. He presented a small bottle, alleging it contained his father's blood, along with a blood-stained shirt, to declare that the government's lethal assaults on parliament members would be revealed. Kasuri persistently criticized the government, focusing his speeches on poor governance and injustice for an extended period.