Court says Therapy Works CEO, staff not accomplices

Keeping the accused detained indefinitely will not benefit prosecution, says court

ISLAMABAD:

An Islamabad court maintained that the owner and employees of Therapy Works were not involved in the murder of Noor Mukadam. In a three-page written verdict, the court stated the reasons for granting bail to the workers of Therapy Works on Tuesday.

The order stated that the owners or employees of the centre were not present at the time of the murder while one of the employees, Amjad, also sustained serious injuries at the hands of the prime suspect, Zahir Jaffer.

The court remarked keeping the accused detained indefinitely will not benefit the prosecution in such cases. The verdict further stated that it cannot be assumed that the team of Therapy Works went to the crime scene to destroy the evidence.

The matter of erasing the evidence of the accused will be decided during the trial, it added. The court also remarked that it will be determined during the trial whether the workers were aware of the murder or not before reaching the crime scene.

Meanwhile, the federal government has submitted the answer in the case pertaining to the release of 41 Pakistanis from Adiala Jail deported from Sri Lanka after getting convicted in drug smuggling cases.

Read Therapy Works’ CEO, staffers granted bail

The case was presided over by Justice Aamir Farooq in which Interior Secretary Yousuf Naseem Khokhar, Additional Attorney General (AAG) Qasim Wudud, and Deputy Attorney General (DAG) Raja Khalid appeared in the court.

AAG said that a detailed report on court orders has been submitted, adding that 26 cases of the suspects have been referred to Additional Sessions Judge Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) while 15 cases have been referred to ANF Magistrate Shaista Kundi.

He said that it is the precedent of the courts to conduct hearings of the cases and award punishments. The court asked the duration of punishments in Sri Lanka and Pakistan for possessing 10 grams of drugs.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 25^th, 2021.