Mardan killing: Judicial inquiry begins in alleged police torture case

Court orders another post-mortem for teenager accused of theft.

SHERGARH:

A judicial inquiry into the death of a 15-year-old boy due to alleged police torture began in Mardan on Saturday.

Police said parents of the deceased recorded their statement before the court of the additional district judge after which the court ordered to conduct another post-mortem of their son Akhtar Ali in the presence of a judicial officer. The court has taken the consent of the parents for exhumation.

The parents’ statement has been kept confidential.

Akhtar Ali, a resident of Chandani Chowk Shergarh, was arrested after an FIR was registered against him and his friend accusing them of theft. According to the report, the boys allegedly stole two cell phones, a pistol, Rs22,000 cash and gold from their neighbour Abdullah Shah on August 21.

Ali was found unconscious at the police station on Thursday when family members went to visit him, his father had claimed, alleging that the teenager died because of police torture.

The initial post-mortem report showed signs of strangulation.

On Friday, protestors had blocked the Malakand Highway for five hours and thrown stones at the Shergarh police station demanding that an FIR be registered against the officers accused. When the protestors became violent, DPO Mardan Danishwar Khan and DCO Zakaullah, came to the site and ordered an inquiry against SHO Fazal Akbar and police official Arif Khan and suspended the accused from duty. The DCOs had also asked for another post-mortem of the deceased boy.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 26^th, 2012.