Handcuffed accused killed on court premises

A handcuffed accused was shot dead on Wednesday inside a court in the federal capital when police were shifting him to a temporary lockup after hearing of a murder case.

According to sources, the deceased was a resident of Charsada and was booked in a murder case registered by the Koral police. Soon after the shooting, the police arrested the assailant and seized the weapon used in the crime, they said.

A spokesperson for the police said Zawar, the victim, was shot dead by the suspect identified as Salman near the Lawyers' Chamber in the Islamabad District Kachehri.

He said the victim and the assailant were related.

On the other hand, Islamabad Inspector General Dr Akbar Nasir Khan has taken notice of the incident and has ordered the Security CPO to probe the matter and submit a report at the earliest. The spokesperson quoted the IG as saying that strict departmental action will be taken against the negligent police personnel.

The incident has once again raised questions about the safety of undertrial prisoners and the capital police’s efficiency to deal with the rising number of such incidents.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 20^th, 2023.