The FATA Tribunal on Monday issued notices to the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) commissioner, Khyber Agency political agent and assistant political agent of Bara to produce the record of Dr Shakil Afridi’s case before the tribunal on July 22.
The tribunal was hearing an appeal submitted by Afridi to review his case.
In 2012, Afridi was sentenced to 33 years imprisonment and fined Rs330,000 for his involvement with a banned militant outfit by the Bara assistant political agent (APA).
In 2013, Afridi submitted an application against the decision with the FCR commissioner, who suspended the APA’s decision and ordered the Khyber Agency political agent (PA) to conduct a fresh trial of the case.
The PA did not hear the case after which it was forwarded to the FATA Tribunal for hearing, which sent it back to FCR Commissioner Captain (retd) Munir Azam to clear ambiguities in the earlier decision on the case. On March 15 this year, the FCR commissioner reduced the prison sentence by 10 years and also cut down the fine by Rs100,000.
Afridi, through his counsels, then approached the FATA Tribunal to look over the decision as he claimed the commissioner was not asked to reduce punishment but to start hearing his case afresh.
On Monday, a three-member bench of the tribunal, under the chair of Shah Wali Khan, heard Afridi’s appeal and issued notices to the FCR commissioner, Khyber Agency PA and Bara APA to produce the record of the case on July 22 for further proceedings.
Dr Afridi was arrested for helping foreign agencies track down Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad in May 2011. However, charges were not framed against the accused in this case.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2014.
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