A man mourns the death of a relative who was killed in a suicide blast at the tomb of Sufi saint Syed Usman Marwandi, also known as the Lal Shahbaz Qalandar shrine in Sehwan, Sindh on February 17, 2017. PHOTO: REUTERS / FILE
The case was heard by ATC No.16 at Karachi Central Jail, where jail officials presented the accused, Nadir Ali and Furqan alias Farooq, before the court.
During the hearing, the court recorded the statements of the judicial magistrate, the petitioner, a doctor and one other witness.
Referring to Ali and Furqan, the judicial magistrate said in his statement that they are the two accused for whose identification an identity parade was carried out. Giving his statement, the doctor informed the court that he had performed post-mortem of 27 bodies and had provided medical aid to 17 injured [in the blast]. The petitioner, while recording his statement, showed the CCTV footage of the day of the explosion and that of a day earlier. As the footage played, the investigation officer (IO) pointed out the suicide bomber and informed the court that he, along with Ali and Furqan, had carried out recce of the shrine a day before the blast took place. The hearing lasted 11 hours, from 12pm to 10pm, during which, the counsel for the accused completed cross-questioning over the witnesses' statement. Following it, the court ordered production of more witnesses at the next hearing on October 31.
According to police, 82 people had died and 383 were injured as a result of the blast in Sehwan.
Witnesses absent
Meanwhile, during the hearing of a case pertaining to provocative statements, registered against Muttahida Qaumi Movement leader Farooq Sattar, another ATC ordered the IO to ensure the attendance of the witnesses at the next hearing.
As many as 14 accused, including Sattar, appeared before the court during the hearing. However, the prosecution failed to present the witnesses, which the defence lawyer, Latif Pasha, termed as a delay tactic. He argued that the case is deliberately being delayed and claimed that accusations levelled against Sattar are baseless. Ordering the IO to ensure the attendance of witnesses at the next hearing, the court adjourned the hearing till October 19.
According to police, Sattar and other accused in the case have been indicted and a case against Sattar was registered at Soldier Bazaar Police Station under sections of the Pakistan Penal Code pertaining to hate speech, others. Sattar had attended a protest against the expulsion of Pakistan Quarters' residents, following which the case was registered against him.
'Declare absconders'
Another ATC ordered the IO to initiate the process of declaring the accused, who are on the run, as absconders, while hearing a case pertaining to anti-state activities, riots, terrorism and interference in state affairs.
During the hearing, accused Ikram, Ehsan and Akhter were presented before ATC No. 12, at Karachi Central Jail. Presenting a report containing details about the accused who are on the run, the IO informed the court that they have gone into hiding to avoid arrest.
The court ordered the IO to initiate the process of declaring on-the-run accused as absconders and also get an advertisement published proclaiming them as such. It also directed the IO to submit a report about properties owned by on-the-run accused at the next hearing, on October 26.
According to the prosecution, the accused had organised a rally in support of Manzoor Pashteen on January 4. The prosecution had informed the court at a previous hearing that accused Alamzeb had made a speech at the rally while other accused had shouted slogans in his support. The speeches at the rally targeted the security agencies of Pakistan, in which the participants of the rally were provoked to act against the agencies, the prosecution claimed.
The accused include Noorullah Tareen, Sher Muhammad, Akhtar Khan, Saif Afghan, Jan Abbas, Gulsher Masood and others. Case against the accused was registered at Gulshan-e-Maymar Police Station.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 17th, 2019.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ