KARACHI: Man gets life for kidnapping sister, others
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, April 18: A man was sentenced to life in jail for taking his real sister and five brothers of her husband hostage for ransom by an anti-terrorism court. Judge Arshad Noor Khan of the ATC-3 also ordered attachment of property of accused Azizullah worth Rs 5,00,000 as he was found guilty.
The court, however, acquitted co-accused Dawood, father-in-law of accused Aziz Ullah, as prosecution could not prove his role as hostage taker.
Accused Aziz Ullah, along with his elderly father-in-law Mohammad Dawood, has been prosecuted for kidnapping complainant Mohammed Ashraf’s five brothers and his wife, Fatima, for ransom on May 19, last year.
Five absconding brothers of accused Aziz Ullah — Habib Ullah Hameed Ullah, Naeem Ullah, Ahmed Shah and Rasheed -– have been declared proclaimed offenders in the case.
The accused were charged with the kidnapping of their own sister, the wife of complainant, Mohammed Ashraf, and his six brothers, Mohammed Salim, Mohammed Naeem, Mohammed Iqbal, Mohammed Pervaiz, Mohammed Akhtar and Mohammed Yousuf in Shershah.
The hostages were kept at Khan Building, Shershah, and the accused allegedly demanded Rs2 million for their release. It was also alleged that the accused received Rs500,000 from Mohammed Naeem, one of the complainant’s brothers, and they also made him hostage after receiving the money.
Aziz Ullah and his father-in-law were arrested on May 23, 2004.
Special Public Prosecutor Naimat Ali Randhawa, who examined in all 13 prosecution witnesses, had, however, pleaded the court to award maximum punishment to both the accused.
BLAST CASE: Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-3 put off hearing of two petrol pump blast cases against three workers of the banned Harkatul Mujahideen Al-Aalmi.
The judge fixed Friday for the next hearing after the statements by the accused. The judge would hear final arguments from special public prosecutor Mazhar Qayyum and defence counsel M. R. Syed on the next date of hearing.
Accused Atif alias Kamran, Naeem alias Roofi and Mehmood Ullah, however, denied the charges. They also disputed the time and place of their arrest. They said they were arrested on April 1, 2004, from their respective houses. The police claimed their arrest on April 6.
BAIL CONFIRMED: An additional district and sessions judge of the district East confirmed on Thursday pre-arrest bail given to Aslam Mujahid, a leader of the Jamaat-i-Islami.
The JI leader was booked by the Jamshed Quarter police for possessing explosive material.
Mr Mujahid had obtained bail before arrest from the Sindh High Court, which had ordered him to get his bail confirmed from the trial court.
