Model Town FIR lodged by police allows wriggle room for Nawaz, Shahbaz

Police has attached legal opinion sought over the FIR, included operative parts of the court orders on the FIR.

LAHORE: The Lahore police on Thursday, utilising its ‘discretionary powers’ filed First Information Report (FIR) in such a way that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif have been spared from either joining the investigation or being immediately arrested, The Express Tribune has learnt.  

Citing court orders in the six-page FIR, which was rejected by Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief, the police maintained that “the registration of FIR against the petitioners (federal ministers) shall not prove their guilt till a decision by court of competent jurisdiction. It cannot be used as substantive piece of evidence against any accused unless proved in accordance with law. ”

The police exploited legal opinions to give a clean-chit to the prime minister, chief minister Punjab, federal minister and some other high profile dignitaries in the FIR, even as it made the Lahore High Court orders a part of the FIR.

The last line of the third page of the FIR states that orders from the sessions court regarding initiation of case against the accused and several other unknown was received. This was then sent for legal opinon, as per law.

The legal aide in his opinion, also part of the FIR (which is an abnormal activity), said that they had reviewed reports and documents from SP Model Town division, Lahore.

“As per report of SHO PS Faisal Town Lahore, duly forwarded by DSP/ SDPO Garden Town, a case, FIR No 510/14 under sections 302/324/186/353/148/149/34/290/291/427/506-B/109 of PPC, section 7 of ATA and sections 13/20/65 AO, PS Faisal Town Lahore was registered on June 17 on the complaint of inspector Rizwan Qadir Hashmi, the then SHO PS Faisal Town, Lahore.

It further says that on June 19, 2014, when the application submitted by Jawad Hamid was received, it was attached with the relevant case file of the FIR no 510/14. Later, the investigation of case was entrusted to a JIT.”

In the FIR registered on Thursday, the police used some operative parts of the court orders in the FIR, to its advantage. SHO Faisal Town Muhammad Shareef Sindhu noted in the fourth page of the FIR -written specially in English- that the applicant (Jawad Hamid) had received orders from the Additional Sessions Judge dated, August 14. They stated that “in view of the above discussions, the application in hand is hereby accepted and respondent (SHO Faisal Town) is directed to register the FIR on the application of the petitioner and then to proceed in accordance with law in the investigation.”

The SHO further noted in the FIR the court order passed on August 26 by the LHC upon writ petition No 2,2661 of 2014. The operative part of the order included in the FIR was paragraph six of the order, which reads “Purpose and object of recording FIR is to set the criminal laws in motion and to obtain first hand information of occurrence in order to exclude possibility of fabrication of story or consultation or deliberation and safeguard the accused of such like happening.

“Thus the registration of FIR against the petitioners (three federal ministers) shall not prove their guilt till decision by court of competent jurisdiction. It cannot be used as substantive piece of evidence against any accused unless proved in accordance with law. ”

Paragraph eight of the LHC order has also been mentioned in the FIR. It reads “arrest of a suspect or accused is not necessary during the course of investigation and the general impression in the regard is misconceived because a person named in the FIR is not to be arrested straightaway upon registration of FIR or as a matter of course unless there is sufficient incriminating evidence regarding culpability of accused. The arrest of accused is to be deferred till the availability of incriminating evidence in order to satisfy the investigation officer regarding correctness of allegations leveled by the complainant against person named in the crime report.”

The police, by adding these extracts of the LHC judgment, has not only exempted the high profile accused from arrests, but has also made sure that if they are asked to join investigation without proving their guilt, it would be considered contempt of court.

The SHO Faisal Town has further noted in the FIR that as per contents of the application submitted by the complainant, Hamid, sections 302, 324, 148, 149, 427, 506, 395, 109 of the Pakistan penal code and 155-c of police order 2002 are being attached, but stated that in view of the facts and circumstances of the case, the orders of the justice of peace and the LHC were very clear and should be implemented in letter and spirit.

According to legal experts and senior police officers, the legal opinion sought  by police in any case is to ascertain if an FIR can be lodged in the light of the contents of the complaint by the aggrieved party and/or to determine the relevant sections that shall be attracted in the FIR (If at all, it may be lodged). A senior police official told The Express Tribune that modus operandi of the police is that after the legal opinion is obtained by them; it is not made a part of the FIR and is considered as an internal correspondence document only.

The SHO Faisal Town has further noted in the FIR that as per contents of the application submitted by the complainant, Hamid, sections 302, 324, 148, 149, 427, 506, 395, 109 of the Pakistan penal code and 155-c of police order 2002 are being attached, but stated that in view of the facts and circumstances of the case, the orders of the justice of peace and the LHC were very clear and should be implemented in letter and spirit.

According to legal experts and senior police officers, the legal opinion sought  by police in any case is to ascertain if an FIR can be lodged in the light of the contents included by the complaint, or to determine the relevant sections that shall be attracted in the FIR (If at all, it may be lodged).

A senior police official though told The Express Tribune that the police, after seeking legal opinion, it is not made a part of the FIR and is considered as an internal correspondence document only.

Similarly, court orders are not made part of the FIR and the FIR is only based on the application filed by the complainant.

However, in this specific ‘high profile case’ the police’s top brass and legal eagles of the government, to find a middle way out, has made the legal opinion as well extracts of the court order, as part of the FIR.

Copy of FIR

Below is a copy of the FIR registered by the police on Thursday in the Model Town incident.