KARACHI: Witnesses testify in Mufti Ateeq murder case
By A Reporter
KARACHI, Sept 25: Two prosecution witnesses testified in an anti-terrorism court on Tuesday in the murder case of Mufti Ateeq-ur-Rehman and his brother Irshad, who were killed in the limits of the Preedy police station on June 23, 2005.
Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of ATC-V, who is conducting the trial inside the Central Prison, fixed Oct 1 for recording the statements of other witnesses in the case.Jamal Ateeq, son of Mufti Ateeq-ur-Rehman, told the court that the information of his father’s death was conveyed to him at about 11.30am on June 23, 2005, and he reached the hospital on the same day.
He also narrated the details of his father’s post-mortem, his funeral and the statement he gave to police about the murder.
Another witness, police constable Mohammad Akhtar, said that at the time of the incident he was on mobile duty and was called by a police official, Raja Akhtar, to accompany him during the inspection of the crime scene.
He informed the court about what he had seen at the place of the crime, saying that he saw blood, shards of glass and the broken brake-light of a motorcycle, which confirmed that a violent incident had taken place there.
Special Public Prosecutor Mohammad Mazhar Qayyum told the court that Judicial Magistrate Sara Junejo, currently posted at Larkana, was scheduled to appear but could not come as she was on leave.
The accused -- Hammad Raza Naqvi -- was identified in an identification parade in the court of the judicial magistrate.
The court had indicted the accused on Sept 12, but he had pleaded not guilty and opted to contest the case.
An FIR (No 315/05) had been registered at the Preedy police station under Sections 302, 324 and 427/34 of the Pakistan Penal Code against Hammad Raza and absconding co-accused Syed Mohammad Askari.
Kidnapping cases
Three defence witnesses testified in an anti-terrorism court on Tuesday in the kidnapping for ransom case of Haji Abdul Ghaffar, a chicken dealer.
Judge Abdul Ghafoor Memon of ATC-II, who is conducting the trial, recorded the statements of Abdur Rehman, Noman and Mohammad Ishaq Soomro.
In their statements the witnesses said that the accused were arrested on June 6, while the police had shown the arrest on June 14, 2007, which, they said, was incorrect.
The kidnap victim was sitting in his shop located in Hussainabad when armed men took him away in the limits of the Azizabad police station on May 7, 2007.
The court had also recorded the statements of three defence witnesses -- Imran, Shahid and Sarwar -- on Sept 22.
They said that the accused were arrested from their residence whereas the police had shown the arrest from Tariq Road which, they said, was untrue.
Special Public Prosecutor Niamat Ali Randhawa, in the cross-examination of the accused, said that the defence counsel had failed to produce any solid proof before the court which could prove the innocence of the accused.
Earlier, the court had recorded the statement of Mohammad Raza on Sept 5, who is an eyewitness of the incident.
He had stated that the victim was sitting in his shop when armed men took him away on May 7, 2007. He had also identified the accused and said that he was present at the time the incident took place.
According to the prosecution, Haji Abdul Ghaffar was sitting in his shop -- Waqas Chicken Centre -- when four persons came and asked him to come out.
As he came out of the shop, they forced him to get into a car and took him away. The second day they demanded Rs15 million as a ransom for his release.
The accused later agreed to accept Rs700,000. They also agreed to get the amount in instalments. They released the kidnap victim on the payment of the first instalment of Rs325,000.
The accused -- Mohammad Hanif, Mohammad Ali and Mohammad Imran -- were arrested on June 14 near Tariq Road when they had come to receive the second instalment.
Another anti-terrorism court on Tuesday recorded the statement of a judicial magistrate, Azizullah Khoso, as prosecution witness in a case pertaining to the kidnapping of a woman, Shahida, along with her nephew, Zahid.
Shahida, a factory worker, was allegedly kidnapped by her two colleagues, Maqbool Ahmed and Ghulam Qasim, in the limits of the Khawaja Ajmer Nagri police station on June 20, 2007.
Judge Abdul Ghafoor Memon of ATC-II, who is conducting the trial, recorded the statement of the judicial magistrate, south, and fixed Sept 26 for final arguments in the case.
The magistrate had recorded the statement of the kidnap victim in the case. He recognized the woman and confirmed the statement that she had given in his court.
The court fixed Sept 26 for final arguments in the case.
