Arshad Sharif, one of Pakistan’s top news anchors, was shot dead in Kenya, his wife said on Monday.
Sharif had fled Pakistan to avoid arrest over sedition charges a few months back.
The journalist was reportedly a frequent critic of the Pakistani military establishment and supporter of former prime minister Imran Khan, who was ousted in a parliamentary no-confidence vote in April.
“I lost friend, husband and my favourite journalist today, as per police he was shot in Kenya,” his wife Javeria Siddique tweeted.
News agency AFP reported that in August, Sharif had interviewed senior opposition politician Shahbaz Gill, who said that junior officers in the armed forces should not follow orders that went against “the will of the majority”.
The comment led to the news channel being briefly taken off air and an arrest warrant being issued for Sharif, who left the country.
The channel ARY later said it had “cut ties” with him.
Gill was detained following the interview – and Khan’s criticism of the judiciary for the detention led to his own court appearances.
“ARY anchorperson Arshad Sharif embraced martyrdom after he was shot dead in Kenya… the local police is investigating,” ARY TV tweeted on Monday.
The Pakistan’s foreign ministry confirmed the incident.
Pakistan is ranked 157 out of 180 countries in the world in a press freedom index compiled by Reporters without Borders.
Sharif was also spotted in London a few days back after arriving from Dubai. Condolences started pouring in from across the country after the news of the journo’s death broke out.
(First published in Hindu Times with inputs from AFP and ANI
