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An official at the Services Hospital here said that the surgery was successful and Iqbal is recovering well.
Pakistan's Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal was stable as he underwent two surgeries today after being shot in an assassination bid by a religious fanatic in Punjab province weeks ahead of the general election, as a second suspect has been arrested in the incident.
Iqbal, 59, a senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader, was hit by a bullet on his right shoulder in the attack yesterday after he addressed an election rally in his constituency Narowal.
An official at the Services Hospital here said that the surgery was successful and Iqbal is recovering well.
"Iqbal is out of danger and recovering fast," he added.
Iqbal underwent two consecutive surgeries and has now been shifted to the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital.
"The abdominal laparoscopy of Iqbal has been performed. Bullet has not breached peritoneum and all intra-abdominal organs are intact. No expanding hematoma. Decision not to remove the bullet from his abdomen has been taken by the group of senior doctors considering that it may lead to more tissue damage," the official of the hospital where the procedure was performed told PTI.
He said the bullet had also penetrated the right elbow joint of the minister.
Meanwhile, police have booked suspect Abdi Hussain, 21, under attempted murder and terrorism charges of Pakistan Penal Code and Anti-Terrorism Act. Azeem, an accomplice of Hussain, who attended the rally along with him has also been arrested.
A 30-bore pistol with nine bullets in it was recovered from the arrested suspect.
Iqbal was leaving a venue after addressing the election rally in his hometown Narowal, some 80 kms from here, yesterday at 6.15pm when Hussain opened fire at him, injuring his arm and abdomen.
Narowal senior police officer Imran Kishwar said the suspect did not get a second chance to open fire on Iqbal.
"The moment Hussain opened the fire on the interior minister the PML-N workers present there subdued him," he said.
Hussain belongs to the religious outfit - Tehreek-e-Labbaik Yarasoolallah Pakistan (TLYP), according to preliminary investigation.
"The suspect who opened fire on the interior minister belongs to the TLYP. We know the motive of this attack but I want to tell that this is a very dangerous game being played against the PML-N," Information Minister Marrium Aurengzeb said.
The Punjab government today constituted a joint investigation team (JIT) to probe the attack on Iqbal.
According to a notification by the provincial police department, DIG Investigation Waqas Nazeer will head the five-member JIT.
The Station House Officer of the Shah Gharib Police Station has been suspended for providing inadequate security arrangements to the interior minister, Geo TV reported.
A senior police officer told PTI that the suspect told investigators that he opened fire on the minister to take revenge on the ruling PML-N for trying to delete the clause related to the Khatm-e-Nabuwat (the finality of Prophet Muhammad) from the Constitution.
"The suspect belongs to a religious family and a worker of the TLYP," he said.
The row had sparked a three-week sit-in last November, paralysing Islamabad.
The sit-in ended when the government surrendered to the Islamist protesters' demands, including the sacking of the law minister, in a deal brokered by the powerful military.
Police said Hussain had made a confessional statement saying "he acted alone because his religious sentiments were hurt by the PML-N government's decision.
A couple of months ago Iqbal had also faced a shoe-attack in his hometown. However, the shoe-attacker was arrested and later freed after Iqbal pardoned him.
The suspect then claimed that he hurled the shoe at him because he was not happy with the PML-N government to change the clause from the Constitution related to the finality of the Prophet.
PML-N federal ministers Khwaja Saad Rafique and Talal Chaudhry have expressed their fear that the attack could be a conspiracy to delay the general election in June/July or stop the PML-N from taking part in it.
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