MP Naz Shah backs Farooq Ali's family over death in Pakistan

Farooq Ali, 44, was found dead in his room at the Ramada by Wyndham Islamabad hotel on March 16.

Bradford West MP Naz Shah held a press conference on Friday alongside Mr Ali’s sister Yasmin and brother and sister-in-law Yusuf and Abda.

“We’ve pushed the police, we’ve been at the police station, we’re not getting any answers,” Yasmin said.

Farooq Ali's sister Yasmin speaks at the press conference (Image: Newsquest)

“We have approached the British High Commission. We have taken it all the way to the top to the Inspector General of Police. They keep saying they’ve done everything but they won’t produce the report.

“Their behaviour’s compounded my grief.

“We need answers from the police.”

• Read more: Bradford family search for answers over brother's death in Pakistan

Yasmin added: “My brother was 44 years old. He had no medical conditions. He was a postgraduate of Imperial College. For a long time he had an interest in playing tennis. At the same time he was writing a fiction book. He also had an interest in Pakistan culture. We’re Kashmiri in background and he was interested in our heritage.”

A photo of the family's beloved Farooq Ali was placed on the table at the press conference (Image: Newsquest)

Backing the call for more Government pressure on Pakistan, Ms Shah said: “Why is it being kicked into the long grass? I recognise there’s a crisis with the country [major flooding in Pakistan] but that does not stop the country from functioning. We’re into the eighth month since his death, since his body was found.”

The Labour politician added: “My constituents have raised concerns around the death in Pakistan. The foreign office have been briefing the family but we don’t feel that we’re getting anywhere.”

Mr Ali’s other sister and father remain in Pakistan.

In August, the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said it was supporting the Ali family and raising the case with local authorities.

Yusuf told the Telegraph & Argus: “I’ve not had anything from them and neither have my sisters. The British High Commission has been helping but it’s at a push.

“We basically have to ask them a few times.”

Describing the impact of the situation on his family, he said: “It’s been really tough to be honest with you. Not knowing what’s happened is really compounding our grief. They seem to want us to go away by not giving us answers. It’s highly frustrating.

“I did get emotional in the interviews at the press conference. My father, he’s had a heart attack earlier this year. His blood pressure’s going up and my sister, she’s a doctor, she can’t fully control it. It’s going over 150 and we can’t get it down. The British High Commission, they could do more. They can set up the meeting with the Prime Minister.

“We’re going to keep doing it, even if we have to demonstrate outside Parliament. We’ve got a large community in Bradford and if they’re not going to do anything for us, then we’ll go down.”

In response to the press conference, a FCDO spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who died in Pakistan and continue to raise the case with the local authorities.”

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