KARACHI, June 18: An anti-terrorism court put off on Wednesday the hearing of the case pertaining to the alleged plot to kill President Pervez Musharraf, after one of the defence counsel moved an application for recalling certain documents.
Mohammed Imran, Mohammed Hanif, Mohammed Ashraf, Waseem Akhtar and Sharib have been charged with hatching a conspiracy to blow up the president’s motorcade within the limits of the Airport police.
Judge Aley Maqbool Rizvi of the ATC-1, who is conducting the trial inside the Central Prison, fixed June 21 for hearing the application of Raza Ali Abidi, counsel for Mohammed Imran and issued notice to the prosecution.
In his application Mr Abidi prayed the court to recall certain documents from the record and proceedings of the US consulate car bombing case, in which his client had been condemned to death.
According to the charge-sheet, the prosecution has cited nine prosecution witnesses and shown Habibullah Khattak, Mohammed Jamil, Mohammed Aamir and Kamran as absconders. Accused Imran, Hanif and Waseem Akhtar, a rangers inspector, allegedly disclosed to have made an abortive attempt on the life of the president in last April.
Accused Habibullah Khattak, who was allegedly given Rs400,000 brought explosives and other weapons in a truck from the upcountry.
Accused Jamil was allegedly given Rs85,000 for purchasing a Suzuki pick-up, which was laden with the explosive. The explosive-laden vehicle was parked near a shop at the Falak Naz Arcade, and accused Kamran had the remote control to blow up the explosives.
Accused Kamran, who had positioned himself at a petrol pump near Star Gate on the Sharea Faisal, allegedly pushed the remote control button several times but the vehicle did not blow up.
The accused had allegedly rented out the shop in a fake name and accused Aamir used to sit in it.
According to the charge sheet, accused Sharib had stuffed the vehicle with the explosives, and accused Naved and Jamil assembled the explosive devise and its remote control.
It was alleged that the accused rangers official had given the information regarding the arrival of the president, and accused Mohammed Hanif, Imran, Jamil, Naveed, Aamir and Sharib had positioned themselves near the Awami Markaz to ascertain if the president’s motorcade had blown up.
According to the prosecution the accused, during interrogation, revealed that they wanted to kill President Musharraf for his anti-Taliban and pro-US policies.
A junior to Khawaja Naveed appeared for accused Ashraf, Abdul Waheed Katpur for accused Hanif, Maqboolur Rahman for Sharib, Ghulam Mustafa Memon for Waseem Akhtar.
KILLING CASE: Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5 adjourned the hearing of the Mehmoodabad killing case against the chief of the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi and three others after the statement of a prosecution witness.
LJ chief Akram Lahori, Mohammed Azam, Attaullah and Malik Tasadduq were charged with killing six people and injuring five others in an attack on April 10, 2001 on Ali Murtaza Imambargah in Mehmoodabad.
The judge, who is conducting the trial inside the juvenile jail, fixed June 21 for the next hearing after the statement of Mohsin Raza Zaidi, who was also cross-examined by the defence counsel. Six were killed and five injured when they were sprayed with volleys of bullets during Maghrib prayers.
