As Matiullah Jan, a senior journalist returned home late on Tuesday night, nearly 12 hours after he was abducted from Islamabad’s Sector G-6 in broad daylight, people on Twitter remembered Aziz Memon, a journalist from Sindh who worked for the Sindhi TV channel KTN News and the Sindhi-language Daily Kawish newspaper, and was allegedly killed for his work. A corresponding trend started for him #AzizMemon. Memon’s family is still waiting to be given justice. Social media users asked the PPP if Aziz Memon’s murderers will ever be exposed.
I'm sorry to bring it up but Aziz Memon, a journalist has been killed in Sindh, right under your incompetent simdh govts nose, and you have the audacity to comment on Matis abduction. How much more hypocrisy do you guys have stored in Zardari or Bilawal house? https://t.co/GE1Xs9oW4b
— اسد (@zarathustra_3) July 21, 2020
After initial denials and unwillingness to probe into the case and claims that the journalist had died a natural death, the Sindh police has arrested his murderers. However, the cause or the intention behind Memon’s murder has not been clarified as yet.
Read More: Sindh police got exposed as the killer of journalist Aziz Memon arrested
Hafeezur Rehman Memon, Aziz Memon’s brother, expressed satisfaction with the progress of the investigation but added that his brother only had enemies as a result of his work as a journalist, not because of any personal conflict.
Aziz Memon was murdered, autopsy report
Autopsy report of local journalist Aziz Memon confirmed that he was murdered as he offered resistance before going down.
Karachi Police chief additional inspector general (AIG) and head of the joint investigation team, Ghulam Nabi Memon addressed the media on May 29 revealing police arrested Nazeer Sehto for the murder of Aziz Memon who also shared the names of his accomplices during questioning. According to the AIG, Nazeer’s DNA matched the sample taken from the crime scene underneath Aziz Memon’s nails. Police also arrested Farhan Sehto and Ameera Sehto who appeared before the court with Nazeer on May 29.
Sindh police claimed he died a natural death
Memon, a journalist associated with a regional Sindhi channel and newspaper, was found murdered in Feb 2020 in Naushehro Feroze.
Calling journalist Aziz Memon’s death as natural is condemnable: Fawad https://t.co/egUn5cKXkL pic.twitter.com/nOM8d7sUCs
— 92 News HD Plus (@92newschannel) March 5, 2020
Memon’s body was recovered from a river on February 16 with a wire wrapped around his neck. The reporter had earlier accused the regional Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leadership as well as Naushehro Feroze police of threatening him for unflattering reporting of party chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s ‘train march’ in 2019.
The autopsy report came a day after the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Interior was informed that Sindhi journalist Aziz Memon had died a natural death as the medical report did not confirm any violence or poisoning.
Read More: Autopsy report reveals Journalist Aziz Memon was murdered, Was PPP involved?
Hyderabad Additional Inspector General Police Dr Waliullah Dal and other police officers briefed the committee, chaired by Raja Khurram Shahzad Nawaz, that journalist Aziz Memon was the patient of hypertension, sugar and his medical report did not confirm any murder.
Aziz Memon, A Brave Journalist
Last year, Aziz Memon reported on the rented demonstrators hired for Bilawal Bhutto’s train march. He was found dead in a canal. Police suspect it to be murder by strangulation as a wire was found wrapped around his neck.
Journalist Aziz Memon case has taken a new turn after DNA report confirmed it was not a natural death and rejected earlier theory that he died due to suffocation. Now we want arrest of actual culprits and those behind the murder. Govt. record in journalist's cases is poor.
— Mazhar Abbas (@MazharAbbasGEO) April 11, 2020
Aziz Memon was associated with Kawish Television Network News (KTN) in Interior Sindh and had reported that PPP rented hundreds of poor people from nearby villages to welcome Bilawal Bhutto during his long march on the train from Karachi to Larkana last year. These rented people were hired to arrange a sham grand welcome for Bilawal Bhutto on the railway station, crafting the optics of PPP’s wide following across Sindh.
Journalist Aziz Memon, who had exposed PPP train rally, has been murdered. Before his death, he narrated that how Sindh police and PPP goons were disturbing him and his family.
Lanat on @BBhuttoZardari pic.twitter.com/SaYs1HGhMt— Ali Raza (@AliRazaTweets) February 16, 2020
In his story, he added that MNA PPP Syed Abrar Ali Shah and Town Municipal Committee Halani had hired people initially to welcome Bilawal Bhutto for Rs.2000 each but they ended giving up Rs.200 to people after which the rented demonstrators protested and he reported the incident.
An earlier video of him informing the authorities about threats to his life emerged on social media after his death. Unfortunately, no timely action was taken by the authorities and police to save Aziz Memon’s life.
In his video, he alleged that local PPP leadership and SSP Naushero Feroze are threatening him and his family ever since he reported the story. He said his children are harassed by these people. He pleaded for shelter probably in Islamabad to save his life.
Read More: Aziz Memon Murder: Sindh government forms a toothless JIT, experts raise questions
In the video he stated that he does not have any party affiliations, not with PTI or PPP, and he is a neutral journalist that he declared in his oath as well. He also requested Bilawal Bhutto to save his life. In a message to PPP’s chairperson, he said that Bilawal Bhutto is a rational man, who must understand that like any other journalist he just reported the incident and that that was not a fabricated story because the complainants were also shown.