Justice for slain policemen: ATC summons witnesses in 15-year-old murder case
Investigation officer worried about tracing 19 witnesses from the police.
Court orders: 21 witnesses were summoned by the ATC-I. These witnesses included police officials and medical experts. CREATIVE COMMONS
KARACHI:
The Anti-Terrorism Court I has issued summons for the prosecution witnesses in a 15-year-old case pertaining to the murder of two police constables, The Express Tribune learnt on Thursday.
The ATC-I issued summons for 21 witnesses, including police officials and medical experts, with directions to appear before the court for recording their evidence in the murder case on February 22.
According to the charge-sheet, unidentified men travelling in a car had opened fire on a police check post near Gulistan Club on the Shaheed-e-Millat Road on April 19, 1999, killing two police constables, Umer Hayat and Muhammad Nazir. The police, however, were unable to trace the suspects.
Following the incident, a case, No. 49/1999, under sections 302 (premeditated murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code read with section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act was registered against unidentified men at the Bahadurabad police station.
In the charge-sheet, the police revealed that one of the suspects, identified as Rizwan Qureshi, was arrested and a weapon was seized from his possession by the Artillery Maidan Police Station in 2013. Subsequently, a case, No.61/13, was registered against him under section 23-A of the Sindh Arms Act.
During interrogation, the police claimed that Qureshi confessed to his involvement in the killing of the two police officials and unearthed the needed details of the case pending since 1999. Qureshi told the police that he along with his six accomplices, Abdul Latif, Dr Tariq aka Arshad Sharif, Khawar aka Naseem, Zafar, Ayaz and Suleman Haider, had come in the car, No. AFR-134, and opened fire on the policemen deployed at the check post.
He further revealed that the weapons used in the crime were submitted to a “sector in-charge”, Abdul Latif, after the incident. The charge-sheet against the absconding suspects was prepared by the investigation officer under section 512 (record of evidence in absence of accused) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Despite the small success in the case, the investigation officer was worried about tracing the witnesses as 19 of the witnesses were policemen, ranging from inspectors to police constables. Due to the frequent reshuffling of the officials, the officer said, it is very difficult to find them and hand over the court summons to them. “I don’t even know how many of the witnesses are still alive,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 14th, 2014.
The Anti-Terrorism Court I has issued summons for the prosecution witnesses in a 15-year-old case pertaining to the murder of two police constables, The Express Tribune learnt on Thursday.
The ATC-I issued summons for 21 witnesses, including police officials and medical experts, with directions to appear before the court for recording their evidence in the murder case on February 22.
According to the charge-sheet, unidentified men travelling in a car had opened fire on a police check post near Gulistan Club on the Shaheed-e-Millat Road on April 19, 1999, killing two police constables, Umer Hayat and Muhammad Nazir. The police, however, were unable to trace the suspects.
Following the incident, a case, No. 49/1999, under sections 302 (premeditated murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code read with section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act was registered against unidentified men at the Bahadurabad police station.
In the charge-sheet, the police revealed that one of the suspects, identified as Rizwan Qureshi, was arrested and a weapon was seized from his possession by the Artillery Maidan Police Station in 2013. Subsequently, a case, No.61/13, was registered against him under section 23-A of the Sindh Arms Act.
During interrogation, the police claimed that Qureshi confessed to his involvement in the killing of the two police officials and unearthed the needed details of the case pending since 1999. Qureshi told the police that he along with his six accomplices, Abdul Latif, Dr Tariq aka Arshad Sharif, Khawar aka Naseem, Zafar, Ayaz and Suleman Haider, had come in the car, No. AFR-134, and opened fire on the policemen deployed at the check post.
He further revealed that the weapons used in the crime were submitted to a “sector in-charge”, Abdul Latif, after the incident. The charge-sheet against the absconding suspects was prepared by the investigation officer under section 512 (record of evidence in absence of accused) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Despite the small success in the case, the investigation officer was worried about tracing the witnesses as 19 of the witnesses were policemen, ranging from inspectors to police constables. Due to the frequent reshuffling of the officials, the officer said, it is very difficult to find them and hand over the court summons to them. “I don’t even know how many of the witnesses are still alive,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 14th, 2014.