ZAB case: SC dissatisfied over absence of record

Advocate accuses that the missing police records were handed over to the Supreme Court in 1978.

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday expressed its displeasure and dissatisfaction over the absence of much required police investigation documents of October 1, 1974 which was consigned to record on basis of untraced evidences against late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry expressed his annoyance over attitude of DIG Police Punjab and told him that he even did not know where the four copies of Ichira police station record were.

An eleven-judge bench headed by the chief justice resumed hearing of a presidential reference sent to it by President Asif Ali Zardari under Article 186 by invoking its advisory jurisdiction over the trial of Bhutto.

Khawaja Haris, Advocate General Punjab, appeared and apprised that the Register 9 was available but the investigation record was handed over to the FIA.

He said Mohammad Aslam Sahi, ASI Lahore had handed over the record to Muhammad Akram, a former judge of the Supreme Court during 1978 but later the police file of 112 pages was not returned. He said the file was declared as untraced.

The chief justice expressing his displeasure told him that they were not satisfied with this version.

He emphasized that for proceeding on the issue, the availability of the file was very vital as it contained untraced evidences against ZAB and the case was closed in 1975.

Haris assured the bench that he had instructed police officials who would be trying to locate the missing file at three places and expressed his optimism that they might come up with a positive result.

The hearing was adjourned till Thursday.