Wali Babar Khan case: Complainant’s lawyer skips court due to threats

Prosecutor asks for inclusion of a key witness.

KARACHI:

Following the killing of the last eyewitness in the murder trial of Geo TV reporter Wali Babar Khan, the complainant’s lawyer decided to skip court on Tuesday.

The case was moved to the Anti-Terrorism Court-III within the Central Jail due to security concerns but witnesses and lawyers continue to receive threats.

A police officer, who helped locate the car that was used in the murder, appeared in court on Tuesday. The car was found in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Block 2 on March 25 last year. The officer told the court that he found registration papers and other items in the car linked to the suspects. The prosecutor also submitted an application to ask for the inclusion of a key witness. Special Prosecutor Abdul Maroof said that owing to the police’s negligence, the original investigating officer in the case was never listed as a witness in the charge sheet. The defence counsel agreed and the court will decide at the next hearing on November 21.

The police also officially informed the court about the murder of eyewitness Haider Ali on Sunday and submitted the autopsy report.

Lawyer Mohammad Khan Buriro, who was earlier working on the case, said he had disassociated himself. “We are no longer involved with the case,” he told The Express Tribune. When asked for a reason, Buriro was non-committal and simply said, “You know why.”

Published in The Express Tribune, November 14^th, 2012.