KARACHI, April 7: The Sindh High Court administrative judge for anti-terrorism courts of Karachi on Friday remanded two guards and a driver of former Balochistan chief minister Sardar Akhtar Mengal to police custody till April 14 in an army personnel hostage-taking case.

Ghulam Hyder Langah alias Chappar and Mehboob Ali Satti, guards, and Nasarullah Mengal, driver, were produced before Justice Amir Hani Muslim, the administrative judge, at noon amid tight security.

Akhtar Mengal, who is also leader of Balochistan National Party (Mengal), and two unidentified persons were declared absconding co-accused in remand papers submitted by the police before the judge.

The investigation officer submitted that complainant Qurban Hussain, a havildar of Army, lodged an FIR at the Darakhshan police station, Karachi, on April 5 that he and lance naik Fayaz Ahmed were intercepted and kidnapped with an intent to kill by Sardar Akhtar Mengal and four or five of his companions while they were going to Seaview on intelligence duty.

He said they were made hostages at the house of Sardar Akhtar Mengal in Khayban—i-Shamsher, Defence, for two hours and they were subjected to torture.

The complainant, according to the IO, also told him that Akhtar Mengal asked his men ‘to kill them and send their bodies to the army.’

The abductees, however, managed to flee after siege of house by police and other law enforcement agencies. The FIR was lodged against the accused under Sections 364, 353, 342, 186, 395, 397, 337 of the Pakistan Penal Code, read with sections 6 (m) and (n) and 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

The IO sought remand of the three accused till April 20 in order to interrogate them.

The defence counsel of accused, Syed Ghulam Shah, raised objections to the police request as, he said, the alleged offences did not fall with the purview of the ATA.

Remanding the accused till April 14, Justice Amir Hani Muslim ordered that medical treatment be provided to them as and when required. As for the complaint of the accused that they were not given food, he directed the police to provide them all the necessities in accordance with the law.