National Action Plan progress: ‘18 executions carried out, four stayed in Sindh’

Seventy-four cases were recommended for trial in military courts, says Siddique Memon

KARACHI: As many as 18 terrorists were executed under the National Action Plan (NAP), while black warrants issued for the execution of four other terrorists have been stayed by courts.

This was disclosed in a presentation given to Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah by chief secretary Muhammad Siddique Memon, home secretary Mukhtiar Soomro and Sindh IG Ghulam Hyder Jamali on Saturday.

They said that various drastic measures have been taken under the NAP. "Around 18 terrorists have been executed in different jails of the province while the courts have granted stay against four execution orders," said the chief secretary.

Memon also said that the Sindh government had recommended 74 cases for trial in military courts, of which, the ministry of interior approved only three cases.

These were the cases of attack on a Rangers mobile van in Sachal, blast and martyrdom of DSP Kamal Mangan and another case related to the blast and martyrdom of Kamal Mangan.

Replying to a question of the chief minister, Soomro said, "Presently, we have scrutinised 10 cases in our legal committee, which has cleared eight cases including the attack on Justice Maqbool Baqar, Nishter Park blast, attack on four policemen, attack on Gulistan-e-Jauhar police station, sectarian murder in New Karachi and five other connected cases."

Shah directed the home secretary to scrutinise more cases because Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif has already ordered the establishment of more military courts in Karachi.

He directed the chief secretary, advocate-general and law secretary to follow these cases in the courts properly and get the stay vacated so that the executions can be carried out.

The chief secretary said that the number of madrassas in Sindh is being re-verified through a special branch.

The exercise will be completed within a week. "Additionally, all the madrassas are being brought on digital map through geo-tagging. This exercise would also be completed within 15 days," he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 30^th, 2015.