ISLAMABAD, Oct 31: The Supreme Court on Wednesday took suo motu notice of the Oct 18 Karachi carnage and decided to hear the matter on Thursday.

“The suo motu action has been taken to ensure that perpetrators of such heinous crimes do not go unpunished and they are brought to book,” the Supreme Court said, adding this would result in restoring the confidence of the nation in the system of governance.

Headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, the bench which will take up the matter will comprise Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan and Justice Nasirul Mulk.

Over 140 people had been killed in the attack on a procession led by PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto on her return to the country. More than 400 people were injured.

On Oct 24, Senator Farooq Naek, the legal advisor of Ms Bhutto, had sent a letter to the chief justice requesting him to take suo motu notice of a letter sent to him reportedly by some unknown Al Qaeda operatives threatening to assassinate Ms Bhutto.

He had provided details of the attack on the rally.

The Supreme Court notice said that although the country was in the grip of suicide bombing and other terrorist acts, the attack on the PPP rally was the most chilling and dreadful incident of its kind, targeting the entire leadership of a major political party and resulting in an unprecedented number of casualties.

It said the incident had not only shaken the confidence of the entire nation, but it had also negatively affected the business environment in the country and resulted in a poor projection of Pakistan in the world community.

It said the incident had its implications for future political activities in the country, adding that since the general elections were round the corner, such incidents could cause scare and disinterest among the people and discourage them from actively participating in the political system and freely exercising their right to vote.

The notice said more than a week had passed since the attack, but there was no clue to who were involved in the attack and what their motives were.

The PPP, it said, had shown reservations over the way the investigation was being carried out and had expressed doubts over the capacity of the administration to do so.

Reverberations of the incident were being heard in international quarters as well. Major European leaders, including the German chancellor and the British prime minister, and the governments of the Unites States and India, have expressed their sorrow and grief over the incident.

The United Nations Security Council in a resolution had condemned the atrocity and directed the member states to extend all possible assistance to help investigate the crime, the court said.