Pakistan's slain woman political leader laid to rest

A woman political leader, who was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Pakistan's violence-stricken port city of Karachi late Saturday, has been laid to rest, local media reported Sunday. Zohra Shahid Hussain, senior woman member of the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf party (PTI), was fired upon outside her home in Karachi. PTI Chief, Imran Khan, blamed the powerful Mutahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) for the killing and said the group's self-exile leader in London, Altaf Hussain, is directly responsible for the incident. The MQM rejected the charges as malicious. Police said they are investigating the incident. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Senior party leaders, who attended the funeral, demanded arrest of the culprits. Former Foreign Minister and senior PTI leader, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, said his party will push the government for investigating into the incident. The PTI chief has also called for protests in Karachi against the murder Monday. The incident occurred hours before the re-polling for a National Assembly and two provincial assembly seats in Karachi following allegations of rigging in the May 11 elections. The polling was held peacefully as the government had deployed security personnel including army paramilitary Rangers and police at 44 polling stations to maintain peace.