Death while in custody: Man withdraws charges against intelligence agency

Petitioner had alleged his brother was tortured to death by agency officials.

RAWALPINDI:

After more than three months and five court hearings, a man pursuing the matter of his brother’s death while in Inter-Services Intelligence’s (ISI) custody backtracked from the case on Tuesday.

Muhammad Bilal withdrew his petition without offering a reason. He simply said he did not want to pursue the case any further. Justice Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi of the Lahore High Court Rawalpindi Bench dismissed the petition.

The victim, Muhammad Aamir, died on August 13 while in ISI’s custody in Peshawar. His body was handed over to his family at the Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar on August 15.

Bilal filed a petition with the LHC seeking registration of criminal cases against intelligence agency officials for killing his brother and conducting an illegal post-mortem of the body.

The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) on the other hand denied subjecting the victim to torture. The agency said that he was suffering from renal failure and died while receiving treatment at the Lady Reading Hospital.

According to official sources, Aamir along with 10 other men were allegedly picked up by intelligence agencies from Adiala Jail Rawalpindi in May last year after they were acquitted in different terrorism cases.

Two senior officials of Adiala Jail were earlier booked by the same court for abducting 11 men from the jail. The two officials are facing trial after being granted bail by the Supreme Court.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 16^th, 2011.