Benazir assasination case: ATC issues fresh summons for US lobbyist Siegel

Siegel apparently did not receive the earlier court notice.

RAWALPINDI:

An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) has issued fresh summons for US lobbyist and writer Mark Siegel to appear before the court as a prosecution witness on January 19 in relation to Benazir Bhutto’s assassination case. 

ATC-I Special Judge Chaudhary Habibur Rehman issued fresh summons for the American journalist, who was also the speechwriter of the former prime minister, after Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) special public prosecutor informed the court that the earlier summons issued to Siegel on December 15 could not be received by the witness in the US.

According to a statement released by Siegel’s legal counsel on Saturday, “Contrary to the press reports Mark Siegel has not received a summons to appear on January 5 before the Anti-Terrorism Court.”

However, the trial court could not record the statements of the other five witnesses as the defence lawyers said they were on strike on the call of their bar association.

Among the other witnesses was Dera Bugti District Police Officer (DPO) Ashfaq Anwar, who was superintendent police (SP) headquarters Rawalpindi in 2007 when the former prime minister was assassinated outside Liaquat Bagh after a public rally.



The DPO had come all the way from Balochistan along with his official guards after a 19-hour drive but his statement could not be recorded in the absence of defence lawyers, said FIA prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali.

The other witnesses included judicial magistrate Ahmed Masood Janjua, former principal of Rawalpindi Medical College Dr Musadaq Khan, Rescue 1122 District Emergency Officer Dr Abdul Rehman and Fire Officer Ghulam Muhammad Naz.

Separately, the trial court set aside the application of FIA’s attorney for daily proceedings. The judge observed that the court could not take up the case daily in the absence of defence lawyers.

Talking to The Express Tribune, FIA’s prosecutor said he moved the Lahore High Court against the decision of the trial court along with the complete record of the case showing that almost all adjournments granted in over five years were at the request of defence lawyers.

Earlier, the LHC had directed the trial court to carry out a speedy trial in the case against the five arrested accused under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6^th, 2013.