Usman Kakar

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Senator
Usman Kakar
Member of the Senate of Pakistan
In office
12 March 2015 – March 2021
Personal details
Born(1961-07-21)21 July 1961
Muslim Bagh, Killa Saifullah, Balochistan, Pakistan [1]
Died21 June 2021(2021-06-21) (aged 59)
Karachi, Pakistan
Cause of deathHead injury
Resting placeMuslim Bagh, Killa Saifullah, Balochistan, Pakistan
NationalityPakistani
Political partyPashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party
Alma materUniversity of Balochistan[1]

Muhammad Usman Khan Kakar (Pashto: عثمان کاکړ; Urdu: عثمان کاکڑ), also known as Usman Lala (عثمان لالا), was a Pakistani politician and leader of the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PMAP). He was an activist in the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM).[2] He was a member of the Senate of Pakistan from 2015 to 2021.

On 21 June 2021, Kakar died in Karachi from a head injury he had sustained four days earlier at his residence in Quetta.[3] On 1 July, a judicial commission was formed to investigate his death.[4]

Early life and education[]

He was born in 1961 in Muslim Bagh, Killa Saifullah District.[1] He received the degree of Bachelor of Laws from Law College Quetta in 1987.[5][1] During his student life, he joined the Pashtun Student Organisation as unit secretary.

Political career[]

He joined the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PMAP) in 1996.[1] He was elected to the Senate of Pakistan as a candidate of PMAP in the 2015 Pakistani Senate election.[6][7][8]

He ran for the post of the Deputy Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan as a candidate of PMAP in March 2018. He was unsuccessful and lost the office to a candidate of the Pakistan Peoples Party, Saleem Mandviwalla, who got 54 votes and who was supported by the joint opposition. Kakar received 44 votes and was supported by the Pakistan Muslim League (N), the ruling party.[9]

Death[]

On 17 June, Kakar was found lying unconscious on a carpet in his house in Quetta, with blood flowing from his head. He was shifted to a hospital in Quetta where he underwent emergency head surgery and was put on a ventilator. When a part of his head was shaved for the operation, his head was found to be swollen and injured. The CT scan showed that there was a blood clot in his head and his condition was gradually deteriorating.[10] He was later shifted on an air ambulance to the Aga Khan University Hospital in Karachi, where he died on 21 June because of accumulation of blood in his brain due to the head injury.

Kakar's family and some politicians claimed that the Pakistani security agencies might be behind the death.[3][11] Khushal Kakar, son of Usman Kakar, stated that the family had found Kakar lying on a carpet at his guestroom with blood flowing from his head.[12] "It seemed that he was grabbed by one person and hit on the head," he added.[12]

Reactions[]

Maryam Nawaz, Vice President of the Pakistan Muslim League (N), praised Kakar as "a strong voice of democracy and a front line soldier of the struggle for civilian supremacy." She added that the "memory of his struggle would be kept alive." Saleem Mandviwalla of the Pakistan Peoples Party, who was the deputy chairman of the Senate of Pakistan, said that Kakar's family believed that he was "murdered". Mandviwalla added: "Doctors were also skeptical about how such profuse bleeding in the head could be caused by a mere fall." Shahadat Awan of the Pakistan Peoples Party and Muhammad Akram of the National Party raised their doubts that the Pakistani security agencies might be behind the "sudden death".[3]

Senators Maulana Atta-ur-Rehman and Kamran Murtaza of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) also said that the nature of the death raised questions. "[Kakar] had received several threats in the past, and now his death is shrouded in mystery," Atta-ur-Rehman said. "He was alone at the time he fell in the house, and if somebody was there, he should not have been lying there for an hour or so," Murtaza added. Hidayatullah Khan of the Awami National Party also voiced his concern and demanded an investigation. Mohsin Dawar, leader of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement, demanded for a complete investigation, claiming that the head injury was "too severe to result from a fall."[3]

Medical reports[]

The postmortem report said there were no marks of violence on any part of his body.[13][14]

Kakar's personal physician, Samad Panezai, stated that the cause of the head injury was not known.[13][15]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Senate elections: Profiles of candidates who vied for top slots - The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 12 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  2. ^ "SMEs to get special fund in budget". DAWN. 24 May 2005.
  3. ^ a b c d "Senate opposition members sound alarm, demand investigation into Usman Kakar's death". Dawn News. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Balochistan govt forms judicial commission to probe Usman Kakar's death". www.thenews.com.pk.
  5. ^ "Senate of Pakistan". www.senate.gov.pk. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  6. ^ "Senate Election: Unofficial Results". www.thenews.com.pk. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  7. ^ "Senate Elections 2015: PML-N, PPP almost get equal representation in upper house | Pakistan | Dunya News". dunyanews.tv. Archived from the original on 16 September 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  8. ^ "46 Senators-elect take oath - Samaa TV". www.samaa.tv. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  9. ^ "PML-N defeated: Opposition candidates Sanjrani, Mandviwalla take Senate's top slots". DAWN.COM. 12 March 2018. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  10. ^ "No sign of torture on Kakar's body: report". The Express Tribune. 22 June 2021.
  11. ^ "PkMAP's Usman Kakar passes away in Karachi". Dawn News. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Family Cries Foul In Pakistani Politician's Death From 'Head Injury'". RFE/RL. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  13. ^ a b Ali, Imtiaz (22 June 2021). "Usman Kakar's autopsy report says 'no marks of violence' seen on any body part". DAWN.COM.
  14. ^ "Former senator Usman Kakar dies in Karachi | SAMAA". Samaa TV. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  15. ^ "PkMAP's Usman Kakar passes away in Karachi". DAWN.COM. 21 June 2021.
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