Fake encounter: PHC dismisses police personnel’s petition

FIR was filed against them for killing citizen

PESHAWAR: A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court dismissed a petition filed by four police personnel who were booked for killing a citizen during a fake police encounter. It ruled that a trial court’s decision to register an FIR against them was legal.

Four police officials filed a petition, saying they were illegally nominated in the FIR. A bench, comprising Justice Waqar Ahmed Seth and Justice Musarrat Hilali, heard the petition on Friday.

The petitioners told the bench they flagged down a car while they were on duty at a checkpoint in Risalpur, Nowshera on April 13. They added the people in the car opened fire on the police. As a result, Taqiullah, a police constable, died on the spot.

According to the petitioners, the police responded with retaliatory fire.  Komandan, who was in the car, was killed. Subsequently, a trial court ordered a case should be registered against the police personnel on the complaint of the deceased’s mother.

The petitioners requested the FIR should be cancelled.

According to Komandan’s mother, her son, who worked as a cloth merchant, was stopped at the checkpoint and tortured. She added Komandan was later killed and the police personnel called it an encounter to cover up the crime. The women said Taqiullah died after his colleagues opened fire.

After examining the record, the bench dismissed the police personnel’s request. It upheld the trial court’s decision to register a case against them.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 4^th, 2016.