A departmental inquiry into the killing of two young men in an alleged encounter with police last week has concluded that the "encounter was staged" and that the police officials involved were culpable.
As per initial police report, the young men, Bilawal and Naqash, were killed in an encounter with Pirabad police during a robbery attempt in Qasba Colony, Orangi Town, on December 3.
However, the bereaved families contested the police account and filed a complaint with the AIG Karachi as well as the DIG East District, alleging that the encounter was staged.
Subsequently, AIG Javed Akhtar Odho formed an inquiry committee, headed by SSP South Sajid Saduzai, and tasked it to get to the bottom of the episode. The committee completed its inquiry and submitted its report to the city police chief on Thursday.
According to the report, Bilawal and Naqash were wooed to the crime scene by the former's girlfriend, Sabra, and her sisters. They informed the two men about the absence of their father Mubarak Shah from home and also sent them burqas to disguise their identities.
When Bilawal and Naqash arrived at Mubarak Shah's house wearing the burqas, shopkeepers in the vicinity noticed their shoes and alerted the landlord. They thought it was a robbery attempt and quickly called in police.
In their report on the sequence of events, police claimed that a gunfight occurred between cops and the "suspected robbers" in which 19 bullet were fired. However, they could not furnish any evidence of "gunfight" before the inquiry committee. In its report, the committee tore into the encounter claim and recommended action against the police officials involved.
According to the initial police report of the incident, two suspected robbers were killed during an attempted robbery at the house of junkyard owner Mubarak Shah's house. Iqrar Hussain Baloch, Pyaro Khan police check post in-charge, stated in the report that he and his team rushed to help when informed by residents about an ongoing robbery attempt.
The robbers, who had taken the women in the house hostage, opened fire on the police when asked to surrender. The police returned the fire, killing both of them on the spot. Police officer Tanveer Hussain was also shot in the leg during the gunfight, Baloch stated, adding that cash, jewelry, and weapons were also recovered from the slain robbers.
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