KARACHI: Lashkar men delay trial by not engaging counsel
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Nov 17: An inordinate delay is being caused in the commencement of jail trial of the accused in at least 23 sectarian murder cases as they have not so far engaged counsel for their defence, despite repeated notices by the courts.
The jail trial of sectarian murder cases against four workers of the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, including its self-styled chief, Akram Lahori, was notified by the Sindh home department on Aug 13.
The trial of the cases was assigned to the anti-terrorism courts Nos 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Police have submitted final charge-sheets (challans) in as many as 23 cases against them.
Mohammed Ajmal, alias Akram Lahori, was allegedly involved in as many as 30 cases, including 26 sectarian murder cases. Mohammed Azam, alias Sharif, and Attaullah, alias Atta Qasim, two other workers of the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, were co-accused with Lahori in as many as 24 murder cases. The fourth worker of the Lashkar, Tassaduq Hussain, alias Shaikh, son of Hashmat Ullah, was involved in 14 murder cases.
One of the cases against the workers of the banned religious outfit pertained to the killing of Altaf Hussain, a divisional engineer of the Pakistan Telecommunications Corporation Limited, on Feb 19 in the police limits of the PIB Colony. The victim was being driven to his office in his official car when he was ambushed.
They were also chargesheeted in the murder case of a doctor on May 31 last year in the police limits of Aziz Bhatti. Dr Raza Mehdi Jafferi was shot dead as he got into his car in front of his clinic in Block-15 of Gulshan-i-Iqbal.
Another case pertained to the killing of Syed Zafar Hussain, director, Research & Technology Centre, Ministry of Defence, on July 7, 2001 in the police limits of Gulbahar.
A case was registered against them by the Gulberg police for killing Syed Ali Hasnain Naqvi on Sept 4 last year.
The four men are also charged with murdering Dr Ishrat Hussain near his clinic in North Nazimabad in the police limits of Shahrah-i-Noorjahan.
Another case pertained to the murder of Mohammed Nazeer on April 7 this year in the police limits of Rizvia.
Two of the four men have also been charged with murdering two people on April 9 this year in the police limits of North Nazimabad.
The ATCs, headed by Judges Arshad Noor Khan, Khan Parvez Chang, Haq Nawaz Baloch and Feroze Mehmood Bhatti, have adjourned the hearing of the cases several times with directions to the accused to engage lawyers for their defence.
One of the ATC judges issued on Nov 13 a notice to the accused for engaging lawyers till the next date of hearing. The judge observed that the accused were using delaying tactics to avoid the legal proceedings against them.
The judge gave the accused last chance for engaging their counsel and informed them that a pauper advocate could be appointed at state expenses.
The accused have been telling the courts that they could not engage lawyers as their families are not being allowed by the jail authorities to visit them.
The accused also declined the offer of Judge Khan Parvez Chang for a pauper advocate, made the other day. They reportedly told the court that they wanted a lawyer of their own choice and from their own sect.
