Attack on ARY: MQM leaders, workers sent to jail

ATC judge seeks charge sheet at next hearing

KARACHI: The anti-terrorism courts’ (ATC) administrative judge sought on Wednesday the charge sheet against three leaders and around 40 activists of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) who have been held for allegedly attacking the offices of ARY News, while sending them to prison on judicial remand.

The police presented MQM leaders MNA Kanwar Naveed Jameel, Qamar Mansoor and Shahid Pasha, along with other party workers, including three women, before the judge upon the expiry of their physical remand.



The MQM leaders and workers were taken into custody in various raids after the August 22 riots in which they allegedly attacked the ARY News office and set a motorcycle and police vehicle on fire. A man was killed and seven others were injured in the incident.

The incident occurred on the sixth day of the MQM’s hunger strike, after a speech by party chief Altaf Hussain, in which he allegedly incited his workers to attack media houses for ‘not getting the desired media coverage.’

The investigating officer told the judge the suspects were arrested with the help of news and CCTV footage and during interrogation, a number of them had confessed.

He also mentioned that 26 of the arrested suspects were recently identified by three witnesses before a District South judicial magistrate, the report of which is available.

The judge directed the investigation officer to submit the charge sheet within two weeks so that the proceedings could be taken forward.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 1^st, 2016.