Pakistan: Political debate turns ugly as father kills son over hoisting PTI’s flag

A father in Pakistan allegedly killed his son over a disagreement regarding hoisting the flag of a particular political party - a shocking incident took place on the outskirts of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province shocking in the jurisdiction of Budh Bir police station.

Local police said that the argument broke out when the son hoisted the flag of former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party at the family home.

The son had recently returned from working in Qatar.

"The father prohibited his son from hoisting the PTI flag at home, but the son refused to take it down and abandon PTI," said district police official Naseer Farid as quoted by media.

"The argument escalated, and in a fit of anger, the father fired a pistol at his 31-year-old son, before fleeing the house."

The accused was identified as Noor-ur-Rehman in local media reports. He was warning his son to avoid politics, but the heated argument took a tragic turn as he shot and killed the 31-year-old son because of hurtful remarks.

Rehman reportedly flew the scene and the son succumbed to his injuries while being transported to the hospital.

The news agency AFP mentioned that the police officials are searching for the father, who was affiliated with the nationalist Awami National Party and had previously displayed their flag.

Watch:Intel reports reveal threat of terror attack in Islamabad

Pakistan election

In Pakistan, elections which are scheduled for February 8 are often marred with violence in Pakistan, with candidates targeted by Islamist bombings and gun attacks.

Commander Moazzam Jah Ansari told AFP that some 5,000 paramilitary Frontier Constabulary (FC) forces will deploy to the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan in the first week of February.

(With inputs from agencies)