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KARACHI, Jan 12: The defence counsel for doctor brothers filed on Wednesday a list of as many as 17 defence witnesses, including Shaikh Rasheed Ahmed, federal information minister and Douglus Matthews, US consul-general in Karachi.
Judge Feroze Mehmood Bhatti of the ATC-2, who is conducting the trial inside the Central Prison, has already fixed Jan 14 for the next hearing. Dr Akmal Waheed, a cardiologist, and his younger brother Dr Arshad Waheed, a kidney surgeon, are facing a series of charges, including medical treatment to Al Qaeda activists and other terrorists, and for sending people to Wana for terrorist training.
The list of the defence witnesses, submitted to the court by Ilyas Khan and Shaukat Hiyat on behalf of the doctor brothers, also included Dr Azhar Farooqui, chief of the National Institute of Cardio-Vascular Diseases, Dr Sher Shah Syed, chief of the Pakistan Medical Association and reporters of four leading dailies.
The other defence witnesses are Mr and Mrs Waheed Ullah Khan, parents of the doctor brothers, Dr Hafeezur Rahman, Anwar, Zarrar Khan, Dr. Sohail Akhtar, Dr Misbahul Aziz, Dr Abdul Malik and Dr Tahir Mehamood Butt.
The defence counsel also prayed the court to issue summons to the defence witnesses for their appearance before the court. The two defendants have been charged with financing, harbouring and treating activists of the Jundullah. The police announced the arrest of the Waheeds on July 2, while the family claimed that they had been picked up on June 17.
According to police, some Jundullah activists, arrested for their involvement in an attack on the corps commander's convoy and other terrorist activities, stated that the doctor brothers had close links with them.
The two doctors were given in police custody for interrogation in the corps commander's convoy attack case and Rangers killing case. However, later they were exonerated from charges in the two cases and the Gulshan-i-Iqbal police booked them in a fresh case on July 15 under Sections 201, 211 and 216 of the Pakistan Penal Code and Sections 21-C, 21-J and 11-M of the Anti-terrorism Act for financing, assisting, harbouring and treating the activists of the banned Jundullah.
According to prosecution, the two doctors sent two activists of Jundullah, Shahzad Ahmed Bajwah and Mohammed Qasim, to Wana for terrorist training. They also allegedly used to give shelter to Jundullah and Al Qaeda activists, who included Abu Massab, Gul Hasan and Hassam Al-Saim.
The doctor brothers were also charged with providing medical treatment to Shahzad Ahmed Bajwah and other Jundullah activists, who were injured during an attack on a rangers' mobile under the Baloch Colony bridge.
RANGERS KILLING CASE: The same court (ATC-2) put off the hearing of the Rangers mobile attack case against two activists of the banned Jundullah after recording the statements of first two prosecution witnesses.
Ataur Rahman and Shahzad Bajwa have been charged with the killing of two sepoys of Rangers and injuring five others in an attack on a rangers mobile van on March 19 under the Baloch Colony Bridge in Ferozabad police area.
Judge Feroze Mehamood Bhatti put off the hearing till Jan 19 after special public prosecutors Maula Bux Bhatti and I. A. Hashmi examined Riaz Ahmed, a rangers sepoy, and Dr Rasheed Khokar as first two prosecution witnesses, who were also cross-examined by defence counsel Ghulam Mustafa Memon.
RANSOM CASE: An anti-terrorism court put off hearing of a kidnapping for ransom case against seven accused after recording the statements of three accused on oath.
Judge Arshad Noor Khan of the ATC-3 fixed January 17 for hearing final arguments after the statements of accused Mohammad Siddique, Mohammed Hasan and Ali Ahmed, who were also cross-examined by special public prosecutor Naimat Ali Randhawa.
The accused -- Kalim Ullah Arshad Pervaiz, Mohammad Siddique, Bilal, Fateh Mohammad, Mohammed Hasan and Ali Ahmed -- have been charged with the kidnapping of a junk dealer's young son on May 24 in Shah Faisal Colony.
According to prosecution, six occupants of a Toyota Corolla intercepted Kamran near Nauman Public School where he had gone to drop his younger sister on his motorbike. He was forced into the car at gunpoint and two of the accused took away his bike.
The accused allegedly demanded Rs2 million for the release of the 18-year-old victim from his father, Ikram Uddin, a Sherhah-based junk dealer. However, later they agreed to accept Rs500,000 as ransom.
It was alleged that the victim was kept at the house of accused in Safoora Goth before he was released after payment of agreed ransom at the Civil Hospital. The Shah Faisal police registered the case initially against unknown culprits on the complaint of the victim's father.
Later on Nov 3, the police arrested all seven accused in a ground near Saba Palace after being informed of the presence of some suspicious people there. The police also allegedly seized unlicensed weapons from them.
MASJID RAZA CASE: Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5 put off hearing of the Masjid Ali Raza bomb blast case against a worker of the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi till Jan 18 on an application by the defence counsel.
In his application, defence counsel Mushtaq Ahmed submitted to the court that the hearing might be put off as he was unable to attend the proceedings due his appearance before an another court.
As many as 25 faithful had been killed and 37 others injured on May 31 this year when a suicide bomber blew himself inside the Masjid Ali Raza, located at the Old Numaish.
Accused Gul Hasan, arrested on June 13, is stated to have been the mastermind of bomb blasts at Haideri Mosque and Imambargah Ali Raza. He is alleged to have planned the attacks with absconding accused that included Asif Chuto and Mufti Obaid.
