Two years before the brutal murder of qawwal Amjad Sabri in Karachi last week, the singer and two television channels were issued a notice of blasphemy by the Islamabad High Court for airing a qawwali that allegedly offended certain religious figures. While this may not be the only motive for his killing in a city known for vicious violence in recent times, musicians and artists have been targetted in Pakistan (and South Asia) for practicing the arts and harbouring views considered too liberal or unorthodox. But in Karachi, there can a hundred other reasons for considering that someone should be dead. You may be shot for resisting the snatching of your cell phone by a thief on the street (no offence meant). One rumour doing the rounds is that Sabri was killed after he declined to perform for a prominent political organisation, and instead attended an event of an opponent. The real motive will probably never be revealed.

Thousands of people attended the funeral procession of Amjad Sabri, killed when unidentified gunmen open fire on his car in Karachi, on June 23. Pic/AFP