ATC orders physical remand of 17 culprits

SIALKOT: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Gujranwala on Monday handed over 17 suspects involved in the brutal killing of two brothers in Sialkot to the police for seven days of physical remand.

The 17 accused were presented in the court under Article 302, 149,148 and 497. The remaining six police officials involved in the incident will be presented tomorrow.

The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) announced the completion of the inquiry on the case on Sunday. Head of JIT Additional IG, Mushtaq Sukhera said that 17 out of the 18 accused were arrested, while six out of 10 police officials had also been held.

ASI Gulzar Khan and Abdul Rasheed escaped from police custody, while SHO Rana Ilayas is still at large. According to reports, former DPO Sialkot Waqar Chohan who was granted bail from Rawalpindi high court till August 30 “is still enjoying his uniform”.

On August 15, teenage brothers Hafiz Mugheez and Muneeb, were mercilessly tortured and killed by a mob in the presence of police officials and Rescue 1122 personnel in Buttar Village, situated in the outskirts of Sialkot.

While addressing a press conference on Sunday, Sukhera assured speedy justice and said that all the accused directly or indirectly involved in “this inhuman tragedy will be brought to task, as no one is above the law.”

A high level judicial commission, formed at the directive of the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary, will submit its judicial probe report before the Supreme Court on September 1.

(Additional input from PPI)

Published in The Express Tribune, August 31^st, 2010.