New Model Town JIT to issue notices to eyewitnesses, complainants
Eyewitnesses and complainants have yet to respond to the JIT after PAT had rejected it
LAHORE:
The new Joint Investigation Team (JIT) formed to probe the June 17 Model Town incident on Friday decided to issued notices to eyewitnesses and complainants to appear before it and kick-start proceedings.
Meeting in Lahore on Friday, the JIT lamented that neither eyewitnesses, nor the complainants had appeared before it owing to Pakistan Awami Tehreek’s (PAT) rejection of the commission.
CCPO Quetta Abdul Razzaq Cheema had chaired the JIT comprising SSP Shehzad Akbar, DSP Khalid Abu Bakr, Colonel Ahmad of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Muhammad Ali of the Intelligence Bureau (IB).
The JIT decided to issue notices to witnesses and complainants.
According to police sources, the JIT had also written a letter to the legal department a few days ago inquiring about its role in the case, adding that both the complainants and eyewitnesses have yet to respond.
The Minhajul Quran (MUQ) and PAT have refused to recognise the JIT. PAT President Dr Raheeq Abbasi had rejected the JIT stating that the team was an attempt to provide the accused with a ‘clean chit.’
Abbasi added his party had not been taken into confidence regarding the constitution of the team, and the PAT did not endorsed the nomination of CCPO Cheema for heading the team. He claimed that an impartial probe could not be carried out under Cheema as he was from Punjab, and that he had close ties with leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
“Only one person included from the ISI means nothing if the team is headed by a partial officer. All he can do is to write a dissent note at the end of the investigation, as it was in the report of the first JIT,” said Abbasi.
The PAT leader added that his party now believes that only way an impartial inquiry can be done is if CM Punjab resigns from his post. “This [his resignation] is our sole demand now,” said Abbasi.
A clash between police and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) workers outside the MuQ headquarters in Model Town on June 17 left 14 PAT workers and 90 others were injured.
The police had filed an FIR of the Model Town incident against MuQ activists on the same day the incident had occurred.
However, another FIR of the incident was registered on August 28 on the complaint of the MUQ International Secretariat director Jawad Hamid.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar and the former Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah had been nominated in the second FIR.
The new Joint Investigation Team (JIT) formed to probe the June 17 Model Town incident on Friday decided to issued notices to eyewitnesses and complainants to appear before it and kick-start proceedings.
Meeting in Lahore on Friday, the JIT lamented that neither eyewitnesses, nor the complainants had appeared before it owing to Pakistan Awami Tehreek’s (PAT) rejection of the commission.
CCPO Quetta Abdul Razzaq Cheema had chaired the JIT comprising SSP Shehzad Akbar, DSP Khalid Abu Bakr, Colonel Ahmad of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Muhammad Ali of the Intelligence Bureau (IB).
The JIT decided to issue notices to witnesses and complainants.
According to police sources, the JIT had also written a letter to the legal department a few days ago inquiring about its role in the case, adding that both the complainants and eyewitnesses have yet to respond.
The Minhajul Quran (MUQ) and PAT have refused to recognise the JIT. PAT President Dr Raheeq Abbasi had rejected the JIT stating that the team was an attempt to provide the accused with a ‘clean chit.’
Abbasi added his party had not been taken into confidence regarding the constitution of the team, and the PAT did not endorsed the nomination of CCPO Cheema for heading the team. He claimed that an impartial probe could not be carried out under Cheema as he was from Punjab, and that he had close ties with leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
“Only one person included from the ISI means nothing if the team is headed by a partial officer. All he can do is to write a dissent note at the end of the investigation, as it was in the report of the first JIT,” said Abbasi.
The PAT leader added that his party now believes that only way an impartial inquiry can be done is if CM Punjab resigns from his post. “This [his resignation] is our sole demand now,” said Abbasi.
A clash between police and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) workers outside the MuQ headquarters in Model Town on June 17 left 14 PAT workers and 90 others were injured.
The police had filed an FIR of the Model Town incident against MuQ activists on the same day the incident had occurred.
However, another FIR of the incident was registered on August 28 on the complaint of the MUQ International Secretariat director Jawad Hamid.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar and the former Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah had been nominated in the second FIR.