Close X
Thursday, November 14, 2024
ADVT 
International

'We Feel Ashamed': Pakistani Relatives of California Shooter Tashfeen Malik

Darpan News Desk IANS, 06 Dec, 2015 01:57 PM
    Estranged relatives of a Pakistani woman involved in a mass shooting in California spoke today of their shame at her crimes, as former classmates and teachers painted a picture of a quiet, religiously conservative student.
     
    Tashfeen Malik, 29, and her husband Syed Farook, 28, gunned down 14 people at a social services centre in San Bernardino, an act praised by the Islamic State group who hailed the couple as "soldiers" of its self-proclaimed caliphate.
     
    According to her uncle Malik Ahmed Ali Aulakh, who is a former provincial minister, Tashfeen was born in the village of Karor Lal Esan in the central province of Punjab but moved to Saudia Arabia around 1989.
     
    Tashfeen's father Gulzar Malik, an engineer, had grown distant from his family and "he never came back even to attend the marriages of close relatives", added Aulakh.
     
     
    "We are ashamed and shocked about this act done by our niece -- why did she do something so gruesome? We can't believe it," he told AFP.
     
    Malik Omar Ali Aulakh, another of her uncles, added: "We have not kept in touch with Gulzar's family and he avoided contacting us."
     
    The southern region of Punjab from which Tashfeen hailed has long been associated with Sufism, a mystical form of Islam whose adherents worship with song and dance, attend shrines and devote themselves to historic saints -- practices viewed as heretical by more orthodox Muslims.
     
    Indeed, according to Mohammad Jamil, a neighbour of Tashfeen's father, one of Tashfeen's uncles himself was a Sufi devotional singer.
     
    "We don't want Muslims to do such things. Such people should be punished, must be punished," said Jamil, adding: "She has dishonoured Pakistan."
     
     
    It is still not clear where Tashfeen became radicalised, but by the time she returned to Pakistan in 2007 to pursue a degree in pharmacology at the Bahauddin Zakariya University, she was devoutly religious and wore a veil, according to former instructors.
     
    "She was not outspoken or ultra-modern but she was religious minded, polite and submissive," said Dr Khalid Hussain Janbaz, chair of the pharmacy department.
     
    "I don't think she could have done what they have accused her of, she was a very good student who never created problems for staff or class fellows," added Dr Hussain Shah, an associate professor in the department.
     
    Pakistan's government Sunday issued a statement condemning the attack, even as its interior minister said Islamabad could not be held responsible.
     
     
    "A country or a national or a religion cannot be held responsible for a crime committed by an individual and I appreciate a wise approach adopted by the US administration on the issue," minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan told reporters in Islamabad.

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Arjun Rampal, Parineeti Chopra Attend Biggest-Ever India Day Parade In New York

    Arjun Rampal, Parineeti Chopra Attend Biggest-Ever India Day Parade In New York
    Thousands of people from the Indian diaspora, Bollywood celebrities and Indian politicians were part of the spectacular 35th annual India Day Parade in New York.

    Arjun Rampal, Parineeti Chopra Attend Biggest-Ever India Day Parade In New York

    Terrorism, UAE Investment In India, Digs At Pakistan: Watch PM Modi's Dubai Speech

    Terrorism, UAE Investment In India, Digs At Pakistan: Watch PM Modi's Dubai Speech
    In a veiled swipe at Pakistan, Modi, while addressing a massive diaspora event in the evening, said India and the UAE have come out against terrorism, "without any camouflage, in clear terms, without caring for anyone

    Terrorism, UAE Investment In India, Digs At Pakistan: Watch PM Modi's Dubai Speech

    Saddest Story: Tragic TB Death of Indian Man Manjit Singh In Australia Highlights Immigration Flaws

    Saddest Story: Tragic TB Death of Indian Man Manjit Singh In Australia Highlights Immigration Flaws
    According to Deputy State Coroner Hugh Dillon, the death of Manjit Singh was one of the saddest stories he ever heard, describing it as a "21st-century retelling" of George Orwell's "How the poor die"

    Saddest Story: Tragic TB Death of Indian Man Manjit Singh In Australia Highlights Immigration Flaws

    Indian Restaurant Owner In Dublin Attacked For Not Serving Drinks

    Indian Restaurant Owner In  Dublin  Attacked For Not Serving Drinks
    An Indian restaurant owner in Ireland was attacked by a drunk man after he was informed that the restaurant had stopped serving alcohol, a media report said on Monday.

    Indian Restaurant Owner In Dublin Attacked For Not Serving Drinks

    Indian Descent Man's Body Found In Fijian River

    Indian Descent Man's Body Found In Fijian River
    Fijian police is investigating the cause of death of an Indian descent man whose body was found floating in Labasa River, a report said on Monday.

    Indian Descent Man's Body Found In Fijian River

    Modi In UAE: Talks Investment, Visits Mosque, Meets Diaspora

    Modi In UAE: Talks Investment, Visits Mosque, Meets Diaspora
    Modi, who is here on a two-day official visit, was received by Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the airport and accorded a ceremonial welcome

    Modi In UAE: Talks Investment, Visits Mosque, Meets Diaspora