KARACHI, July 1: Nine workers of the banned Harkatul Mujahideen Al-Aalmi were indicted on Thursday in the Macedonian Consulate bomb blast case by an anti-terrorism court (ATC).
Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5, who is conducting trial inside the Central Prison, ordered the prosecution to produce its witnesses on Saturday after the Aalmi activists denied charges and pleaded "not guilty".
The accused were charged with committing a bomb blast after stabbing two men and a woman to death on Dec 5, 2002, inside the honorary consulate of Macedonia, situated at Phase-IV of the Defence Housing Authority.
The accused are Syed Sohail Akhtar alias Mustafa, Zafar Iqbal alias Sohail, Naeem Rafi alias Nimmi, Mohammed Atif, Sameerullah alias Somi, Mohammed Khalid alias Shahzad, Abdur Razzaq alias Bhiya, Syed Ahmed Kazmi alias Shahbaz and Mehmoodullah.
According to the prosecution, the accused entered the consulate building late night and stabbed Hameed Hactor Masih, Mohammed Asif and Ghazala Parveen to death. They planted an explosive device which they detonated with a remote control after leaving the consulate. The intruders also took away a computer and printer from the spot.
They were charged with the offences under Section 302, 395 and 427 of the Pakistan Penal Code, Sections 3 and 4 of the Explosive Act and Section 7 (b) of the Anti-terrorism Act.
JUDGMENT RESERVED: The prosecution prayed an anti-terrorism court to award capital punishment to two workers of the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi in a sectarian murder case.
Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5 fixed July 6 for the pronouncement of verdict after hearing final arguments from special public prosecutor Mazhar Qayyum and defence counsel M. R. Syed.
The LJ men - Ataullah and Mohammed Azam - have been prosecuted for killing Dr. Raza Peerani on June 26, 2003, in Soldier Bazaar. Two motorcyclists opened fire on the doctor as he got into his car after leaving his clinic.
The public prosecutor contended that the prosecution had successfully proved its case beyond any reasonable doubt and prayed the court to award them maximum punishment. He submitted that the accused were "habitual offenders" and they had already been convicted in several sectarian murder cases.
Besides, he argued that two dispensers of the victim doctors, who were present at the time of murder, appeared before the trial court as eye-witnesses and they duly identified and the accused with their specific roles.
He argued that there was no enmity between the accused and prosecution witnesses, as such the evidence of eye-witnesses should be relied upon. The prosecutor contended that the report of the ballistic expert showed that the weapon seized from the accused was the same which they had used in the instant offence.
The defence counsel, however, prayed the court to acquit the accused as the prosecution's case was full of contradictions. Meanwhile, the prosecution closed its side in a sectarian murder case against accused Ataullah and Mohammed Azam after examining its last three witnesses.
Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5 fixed Friday for recording statements of the accused. The case pertained to the killing of Syed Athar Hussain Rizvi on May 3, 2001, within the limits of the Korangi Industrial Area. He was the Pesh Imam of Asgharia Imambargah in Bhitai Colony.
The three prosecution witnesses - DSP Amir Hameed, Sub-inspector Mohammed Aslam Joya and SI Saeed Ghani - were also cross-examined by the defence counsel. According to the prosecution, the accused came to the house of the pesh-imam on foot around 10pm. They called the victim and as he opened the door, one of the accused opened fire on Mr Rizvi.
