September 16, 2007	Sunday	Ramazan 03, 1428

RAWALPINDI, Sept 15: The prosecution here on Saturday informed an anti-terrorism court (ATC) that the former Khateeb of Lal Masjid, Maulana Abdul Aziz and former ISI operative Khalid Khwaja were not involved in a case of CDs’ burning in Bhara Kahu.

The special public prosecutor told the ATC-1 Judge Habibur Rehman that the accused had been absolved from the charge by the police as no proof of their involvement in the incident was found.

The Bhara Kahu police had registered a case against the two accused and some students of Jamia Fareedia for allegedly forcing the shopkeepers to close their business and burning CDs early this year. The ATC has already granted bail to the accused in the same case.

Meanwhile the ATC-2 Judge, Sakhi Muhammad Kahut, dropped the terrorism charges against a lawyer of Chakwal who was arrested for hurling threats to the federal housing minister.

Sheikh Zafar Iqbal, former president of District Bar Association, Chakwal, was allegedly arrested for threatening Iqbal Muhammad Ali Khan, Federal Minister for Housing and Works during his visit to Chakwal Press Club on Thursday.

The lawyers gathered outside the press club and tried to block the way of the minister and chanted anti-MQM slogans to protest the killing of a senior lawyer in Karachi last week and besieging of Sindh High Court.

The police charged the lawyer with creating law and order situation and terrorism. Some other lawyers booked in the case got pre-arrest bails.

The ATC judge directed the police to produce the lawyer before the area magistrate as he could not be tried for terrorism charges.