Taxi driver murder case: ATC dismisses plea to transfer case
Court notes that the offence fell under the ambit of the anti-terrorism act, 1997.
Court notes that the offence fell under the ambit of the anti-terrorism act, 1997. PHOTO: FILE
KARACHI:
An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) dismissed on Wednesday an application seeking transfer of the murder case of taxi driver, Murid Abbas, to a regular court.
The ATC-I dismissed the plea after hearing arguments from both sides, ruling that no legal justification was found in the plea of the defence that the case was lacking the motive of spreading insecurity in society. The court also noted that the offence fell under the ambit of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, (ATA) and the suspect would be tried by the ATC, said the prosecutor. The court fixed January 16 as the date for indictment, he added.
Lance Naiks, Ghulam Rasool and Barkat Ali, and sepoys, Waqar Ahmed and Qadeer Abbas, of Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, were arrested for their alleged involvement in the killing of taxi driver, Murid Abbas, who was gunned down in Gulistan-e-Jauhar on July 16.
The police, however, have submitted a charge-sheet against Rasool only, leaving out the other three. They have already been released as the police found no concrete evidence against them.
The defence counsel had moved an application under Section 23 (power to transfer cases to regular courts) of the ATA stating that the case may be transferred to an ordinary court as the police had stated in the charge-sheet that it was an accidental murder.
In the charge-sheet, the police said that it was an unintentional murder as Rasool had tried to stop the taxi driver by opening fire at the tyre of his vehicle. After inspecting the place of the incident, examining the evidence and recording the statements of witnesses, said the police, it was an accidental and unintentional murder.
The court adjourned the case for January 16 when charges will be framed against the suspect.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 16th, 2014.
An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) dismissed on Wednesday an application seeking transfer of the murder case of taxi driver, Murid Abbas, to a regular court.
The ATC-I dismissed the plea after hearing arguments from both sides, ruling that no legal justification was found in the plea of the defence that the case was lacking the motive of spreading insecurity in society. The court also noted that the offence fell under the ambit of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, (ATA) and the suspect would be tried by the ATC, said the prosecutor. The court fixed January 16 as the date for indictment, he added.
Lance Naiks, Ghulam Rasool and Barkat Ali, and sepoys, Waqar Ahmed and Qadeer Abbas, of Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, were arrested for their alleged involvement in the killing of taxi driver, Murid Abbas, who was gunned down in Gulistan-e-Jauhar on July 16.
The police, however, have submitted a charge-sheet against Rasool only, leaving out the other three. They have already been released as the police found no concrete evidence against them.
The defence counsel had moved an application under Section 23 (power to transfer cases to regular courts) of the ATA stating that the case may be transferred to an ordinary court as the police had stated in the charge-sheet that it was an accidental murder.
In the charge-sheet, the police said that it was an unintentional murder as Rasool had tried to stop the taxi driver by opening fire at the tyre of his vehicle. After inspecting the place of the incident, examining the evidence and recording the statements of witnesses, said the police, it was an accidental and unintentional murder.
The court adjourned the case for January 16 when charges will be framed against the suspect.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 16th, 2014.