Why is Imran Farooq case registered in Pakistan, asks IHC judge

Evidence sharing between Pakistani and British investigators is in progress, Federal Investigation Agency tells IHC

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) informed the Islamabad High Court on Wednesday that evidence sharing between Pakistani and British investigators in connection with the Imran Farooq murder case in progress.

A division bench comprising Justice Noorul Haq N Qureshi and Justice Athar Minallah, however, posed several intriguing questions to the FIA standing counsel Khawaja Imtiaz and directed him to come prepared for the next hearing.



The details surfaced during the hearing of a post-arrest bail application filed by accused person Moazzam Ali, through his counsel, Mansoor Afridi, after an anti-terrorism court dismissed his plea.

“Why was this case registered in Pakistan,” inquired Justice Qureshi, adding that it appeared that the case was politically motivated.

The FIA counsel replied that the case has been registered in the country under section 4 (Extension of code to extra-territorial offences) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), adding that he would further satisfy the court when the process of evidence sharing is completed between the FIA and London’s Metropolitan Police Service (Scotland Yard).

He informed the court that a Scotland Yard team was currently in Pakistan and evidence was being exchanged between the two agencies.

To this, Justice Qureshi asked if evidence sharing was between the two agencies or the two countries, and also why the FIA registered the case instead of the police. Imtiaz said that it was being shared between the countries and that the FIA registered the case because it involved a foreign territory.



To the question on what parts of PPC Section 4 are being applied, Imtiaz said that he could not argue on it yet as evidence sharing will be take four or five days to complete, which is when he would be in a position to provide satisfactory answers to the court.

He subsequently requested the court to grant time for preparing arguments as he only came to seek an adjournment on Wednesday.

While accepting his request, the court granted him one week to argue on the bail plea.

In the bail application, Afridi said that Ali should be released on bail as the case had been registered on the basis of hearsay evidence which had no value in the eyes of law.

The counsel said that the record of the case do not prove the allegation of murder of Dr Farooq as the FIA lacks documents, including death certificate, post mortem report, memo of bloodstained earth and memo of rough site plan as well as sealed site plan. “Even no evidence is available on record to ascertain the definite manner of death of the deceased,” he alleged.

In addition, he said that the occurrence took place in London, alleged conspiracy was hatched in Karachi, both the places were beyond territorial jurisdiction of the trial court but still the authority preferred to register the case in Islamabad without any territorial jurisdiction.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 26^th, 2016.