A gunman shot interior minister Ahsan Iqbal, a senior member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and ally of ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, as he was leaving a constituency meeting in Punjab province on Sunday. Iqbal was recovering in hospital from a bullet wound on Monday. Minister of state for interior affairs Talal Chaudhry said he was stable and in good spirits. Leaders from Pakistan’s main opposition parties all condemned the assassination attempt. However, a prominent official of Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) opposition party suggested that Sharif had created the conditions for the attack at large rallies protesting his removal by the Supreme Court last July. Naeem ul Haq, chief of staff for former cricket star Khan, strongly criticized Nawaz Sharif for making wild accusations against his opponents and creating tension and anger in the political climate. He stated that if Sharif continues to spread poison, such incidents will persist. Despite being disqualified as prime minister by Pakistan's Supreme Court last July for unreported income, Sharif's party still holds a majority in parliament. Sharif has accused the court ruling as a conspiracy led by rival Khan and has portrayed him as a puppet of the powerful military establishment that has a history of interfering in Pakistani politics. Khan refutes allegations of colluding with the army, while the military denies involvement in politics. The recent attack on Sunday has increased tension ahead of the upcoming election in late July. Initial reports suggest the attacker may have ties to a new Islamist party advocating for the death penalty for blasphemy and strict sharia law. However, the Islamists deny any connection to the attacker, according to a local administrator's report seen by Reuters. "We do not have weapons. We are engaged in a nonviolent struggle. Those plotting against Tehreek-e-Labaik will not be successful." Khadim Hussain Rizvi, the leader of the party, denounced the attack on Iqbal and stated that Labaik is engaged in a peaceful struggle to establish the Prophet's religion. The police confirmed that Iqbal was shot in the right arm, with the bullet entering his groin. The suspected shooter, identified as 21-year-old Abid Hussain, has not had any motive officially reported by the authorities. The minister of state Chaudhry stated that religious radicalism is a part of the suspect's background, and further arrests have been made as police investigate groups that may have influenced the attack. He emphasized that radicalism is not an individual issue, but a societal problem. Labaik, the group responsible for the attack, originated from a protest movement in support of Mumtaz Qadri, who murdered the governor of Punjab in 2011. The movement caused major disruptions in the country's capital last year over changes to electoral laws. The attempted assassination of Iqbal has raised concerns about potential violence by Islamist groups ahead of the upcoming elections, recalling the tragic events surrounding the 2007 polls when former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was killed.