LAHORE: Police have arrested a man accused of opening fire near the vehicle of Federal Information Minister Atta Tarar in Lahore’s Defence A neighbourhood late Saturday night.
According to police officials, the suspect, identified as Osama, allegedly drove past the minister’s vehicle before firing shots into the air. No one was injured, and no damage to the minister’s vehicle was reported.
Authorities later detained the suspect and recovered the firearm believed to have been used in the incident. The vehicle he was driving was also taken into custody as part of the investigation.
Investigators said the suspect was tracked with the assistance of the Safe City Authority, whose surveillance system helped identify and locate him shortly after the incident. Police are continuing to examine the motive behind the firing.
Speaking after the incident, Atta Tarar said he was safe and described the episode as a case of a young man behaving recklessly during weekend celebrations. He said he did not consider the matter to be serious and declined to comment further.
The minister’s mother, Sajida Tarar, also stated that there was no indication her son had been deliberately targeted. She said Atta was returning home around 3:00am when he heard gunfire near his vehicle, after which he followed the suspect’s car and alerted the police.
She praised the police for their swift response, saying the driver was arrested soon afterward. According to her, the suspect appeared to be intoxicated or otherwise not in a normal state of mind and was unaware that the vehicle belonged to the federal minister. She also noted that Atta Tarar was travelling without security personnel at the time.
Preliminary findings from the investigation indicate that the suspect has a previous criminal record and had earlier been arrested in connection with a similar firing incident. Police said the inquiry remains underway.
