A protracted legal saga spanning over eight years has reached its climax with the approval of a petition to withdraw charges against senior PPP leader Dr Asim Hussain and MQM leader Anis Qaimkhani. They were accused of being involved in facilitating providing medical treatment to suspected terrorists.
The Anti-Terrorism Court No 2 announced its judgment on the long-pending appeal submitted by the Sindh Home Department.
The appeal sought the cessation of legal proceedings linked to the controversial case revolving around the provision of medical care to individuals associated with acts of terrorism.
The case dates back to November 25, 2015 when the Rangers lodged a case at the North Nazimabad police station in Karachi. The allegation implicated the utilisation of medical facilities associated with Dr Asim, a former petroleum minister, for catering to the medical needs of injured terrorists of the Lyari gang war, banned jihadi groups, and the MQM. Apart from Dr Asim and Qaimkhani, the case also involved Abdul Qadir Patel, Abdul Rauf Siddiqui, Wasim Akhtar, and Usman Moazzam. The late Saleem Shahzad of MQM, who was also nominated in the case, died during the course of the trial.
The Sindh Home Department invoked Section 497 to underpin its plea for case dismissal. The crux of their stance rested upon the scarcity of substantial evidence against the accused.
A notable concurrence with this stance emerged from the investigating officer, who advocated for the case's elevation to 'Class A', denoting its insignificance in the eyes of justice.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 13th, 2023.
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