PESHAWAR, Oct 8: A local court on Saturday granted transit custody to the Karachi police of two accused charged with the recent kidnapping of a Karachi’s banker. The accused, Qazi Haneefullah alias Major alias Fauji, and his son Haji Farhan were arrested by the officials of the Mardan police about two weeks ago and were handed over to the Criminals Investigation Department.

On the pointing of Qazi Haneef, the kidnapped banker Hamid Umer Samin, was recovered from Rashakai (Nowshera district) near Mardan.

On Sunday last the victims was brought by the officials of the Karachi police to Peshawar central prison where during an identification parade he recognised Qazi Haneef as the person who had kidnapped him.

Hamid Umar Samin is the regional manager of Credit Initiation Unit, United Bank Limited, Karachi and is stated to be son of Ghani Samin, the financial adviser to the finance ministry. The kidnappers had allegedly abducted him from Karachi and brought him to Mardan. On their way they had also met a major traffic accident during which the kidnapper as well as the victim received injuries.

The case took various turns on Saturday. First, a petition was filed on behalf of both the accused, father and son, seeking their transit bail.

Advocate Usman Khan Tarlandi appeared before the Peshawar district and sessions judge, Shahjehan Khan Akhundzada, for the two petitioners and stated that although one of the accused, Qazi Farhan was charged in the case, he was innocent and got nothing to do with this case.

He contended that they may be granted transit bail for the purpose that they could appear before the court concerned in Karachi.

The court granted them transit bail on furnishing two sureties each of Rs 80,000 and directed them to appear before the court in Karachi within 10 days.

While the judge had yet to sign the release order of the two accused-petitioners, he had to left the court in emergency due to earthquake emerging as his family is in Abbotabad, one of the worst hit districts in NWFP.

In the meantime, a team of Karachi police reached Peshawar, seeking custody of the two accused persons.

Sources said that when the team was informed about the order of the court, they contacted some high officials following which the local police received some instruction from Islamabad.

The police produced the two accused-persons before an additional district and sessions judge, Ihtesham Khan, who allowed transit custody of the accused with the direction to produce them before the concerned court in Karachi.