Raza Mahmood Khan, a right activist as well as a supporter of India and Pakistan friendship, went missing a week before. His supporters and co-workers are now calling his disappearance as an attempt to harass those who are working towards peace and harmony. They also said it is an attempt to silence those who are raising their voice against the noble act of creating a bond of friendship between the two countries.
On December 2, 2017, from Lahore, Raza Mahmood Khan went missing and was not seen after 8 pm when he had left his office.
It was reported that his phone was switched off when his friends tried to call him up the next day. Khan’s friends were worried about him and they went to his apartment and found his room locked from outside but the lights inside his rooms were switched on.
Khan’s friend, Raheem Haq stated, “We went to the police and along with them we entered his house. We found all his belongings were scattered all over the place and the CPU of his computer was missing”.
A day before in Lahore at a press conference, Khan’s friend had announced that for their friend they would be filing a habeas corpus petition at the Lahore High Court. They also knocked the doors of the Commission of Inquiry on the Enforced Disappearance.
They further proclaimed they would be holding a protest nationwide in front of Pakistani Embassies in London and Washington DC.
Aaghaz-e-Dosti, an initiative which aims towards promoting friendship between India and Pakistan, and Khan was a convener of this initiative. This initiative helps students of both India and Pakistan send paintings and messages to each other, which depicts peace and love. Saeeda Diep, an activist said, through this initiative—which did not receive any NGO funding—we would publish calendars carrying paintings of students from India and Pakistan. He also said Raza had been a faithful believer of peace in the region.