Bhutto’s murder investigation: Former Rawalpindi police chief, SP arrested

Saud Aziz, Khurram Shahzad held for failing to protect Bhutto.

RAWALPINDI:

The police on Wednesday arrested two senior police officers after their bail was rejected in court for alleged dereliction of duty over the 2007 assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

Former Rawalpindi City Police Officer (CPO) Saud Aziz and Superintendent Police (SP) were arrested after an Anti Terrorism Court (ATC) cancelled their interim bail.

“Both the police officers have been arrested. The court rejected their application for bail and the judge said, ‘it was their duty to carry out the post-mortem’,” special prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali told reporters.

According to the fresh challan, the allegations were leveled against them for providing inadequate security to the former premier, hosing down the crime scene and destroying evidence.

Asked about the charges against the officers on Wednesday Ali told reporters, “Today, the honourable judge rejected their application for bail and ordered their arrest because it was the state’s obligation to carry out a post-mortem.”

The then fire brigade officer Ghulman Muhammad Naz, Dr Abdur Rehman of Rescue 1122 had also confirmed in their respective statements that the crime scene was forcibly washed.

Zulfiqar told the court that according to the security schedule of the former premier the then SP Ashwaq Anwar was deputed on Benazir Bhutto’s security along with 120 commandos, who had to cordon the vehicle of Benazir Bhutto on its way to Liaquat Bagh. The security plan was acted upon and BB’s vehicle had arrived at Liaquat Bagh in 15 minutes. However, after finishing her speech the scheduled security protocol was not followed which resulted in BB’s death, said the prosecutor, claiming this was a conspiracy.

Malik Rafiq, the counsel for the police officials, said that the former CPO Aziz had ordered hosing down of the crime scene only after collecting the evidence. He further maintained that BB’s husband Asif Ali Zardari and Makhdoom Amin Fahim, BB’s political aide had not allowed her postmortem.

The court will resume hearing on January 7, 2011.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 23rd, 2010.