Ghotki, October 8, 2025: In yet another brutal assault on press freedom in Sindh, local journalist Tufail Rind was shot dead by unidentified assailants in the Mirpur Mathelo area of Ghotki district early Wednesday morning, police confirmed.
According to officials, the attack occurred when Rind was driving his children to school. “Gunmen on a motorcycle opened indiscriminate fire at his car near Maso Wah on Jerwar Road,” said the Ghotki police in a statement. “Rind died on the spot, while his children miraculously escaped unharmed.”
Witnesses said the attackers fled immediately after the assault, causing panic in the area. The journalist’s body was shifted to District Headquarters Hospital, Mirpur Mathelo, for medico-legal formalities.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Anwar Khetran reached the crime scene shortly after the incident, met with the victim’s family, and directed law enforcement officials to ensure immediate arrests.
“The SSP assured the family that all individuals involved in the murder would be brought to justice,” the police said. Later in the day, SSP Khetran confirmed that two suspects had been arrested.
“The slain journalist had a long-running dispute with members of his own community for the past four years, during which two other people were killed,” Khetran stated, adding that this was the third murder linked to the same feud.
He further said Rind had previously complained about a gunfire incident at his home and that arrests had been made earlier this month in that case.
A few hours after Rind’s killing, tragedy struck his family again when his eight-year-old niece fainted upon hearing the news. She was rushed to the hospital in critical condition but died en route to Sukkur. Her body was later handed over to the family after medico-legal formalities.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah took notice of the murder and directed Inspector General Ghulam Nabi Memon to submit an immediate report.
“Attacks on journalists are attacks on press freedom, which cannot be tolerated under any circumstances,” Murad said, vowing a “transparent and impartial investigation.”
Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon and Sukkur Mayor Barrister Arsalan Islam Sheikh also strongly condemned the incident. “Such attacks are equivalent to assaults on freedom of expression,” they said in separate statements.
The killing sparked protests across Sindh, with journalists staging sit-ins outside the SSP’s office in Ghotki. The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Karachi Press Club, and other regional press clubs issued a joint statement demanding immediate arrests and a comprehensive protection policy for journalists.
“Another voice has been silenced — punished for speaking the truth,” read the statement issued by PFUJ.
PFUJ Vice President Akbar Jafri said Rind had publicly expressed fears for his life on social media just days before his murder. “The government’s failure to act on his appeals cost him his life,” Jafri added, calling the killing “a direct consequence of official negligence.”
Veteran journalist Mazhar Abbas also condemned the killing on X (formerly Twitter), writing: “Following Imtiaz Mir’s murder, another journalist, Tufail Rind, has been killed within two weeks. The situation in Sindh is deeply alarming.”
Rind’s death is the latest in a string of targeted attacks against journalists in Sindh. Last month, television anchorperson Imtiaz Mir was shot in Karachi’s Malir area and later succumbed to his injuries.
In May 2024, Nasrullah Gadani, a Sindhi newspaper reporter from Ghotki, was gunned down and died three days later in Karachi. In August 2023, Muhammad Bachal Ghuniyo, another Ghotki-based journalist, was also killed by unknown assailants.
According to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Pakistan remains one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, with a high rate of impunity for perpetrators. A report by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) found that between 2006 and 2023, 87 journalists were murdered in Pakistan, but only two cases resulted in convictions.
Journalists’ associations across Pakistan are now urging the government to enact stronger protections and end the culture of impunity that enables such attacks.
“The murder of Tufail Rind is a reminder that speaking the truth in Pakistan remains a dangerous act,” said a joint statement by Sindh-based press unions. “We will not remain silent — not anymore.”
Rind, remembered as a brave and outspoken reporter, was associated with Mehran Newspaper and Royal News, and served as an office-bearer of the Mirpur Mathelo Press Club. His funeral was attended by a large number of citizens, journalists, and political leaders who demanded justice and safety for those who speak truth to power.
