KARACHI, Feb 3: A judicial magistrate in separate raids on a police station and a police post found two men in wrongful confinement of police and got both of them released on Thursday.

On a directive of a district and sessions court, Judicial Magistrate (west) Afzal Roshan conducted the raids on the Ahmedpur post of the Pirabad police station and the Manghopir police station and got the detainees, Mohammad Ahmed and Abid, released on personal bonds.

The magistrate also directed the station house officers of both the police stations and the official in charge of the Ahmedpur police post to appear in court on Friday.

Court sources said that the magistrate found the victims in the lockups of the Ahmedpur post of the Pirabad police station and the Manghopir police station and got the detainees freed when the police failed to produce any FIR against them or other evidence to justify their detention.

They said the magistrate would submit his report in the district and sessions court on Friday.

Earlier, in an application moved under Section 491 of the criminal procedure code in the district and sessions court, Mohammad Razi stated that the police picked up his relative, Mohammad Ahmed, a couple of days ago and detained him at the Ahmedpur post located near Kati Pahari. He alleged that the victim had unlawfully been detained by the police who were demanding bribes for his release. He prayed to the court for the recovery of the detainee.

Another applicant, in his petition, also alleged that police arrested his relative, Abid, and wrongfully confined him at the Manghopir police station.

After a preliminary hearing, the district and sessions judge directed the judicial magistrate to conduct the raids on the information by the applicants and have the victims released if found in wrongful confinement.

Shershah bridge collapse case A sessions court on Thursday recorded the testimony of a prosecution witness in the Shershah Bridge collapse case and directed the witness to produce all documents in court on Feb 19.

Five people were killed, 14 others injured and six vehicles damaged when a portion of the then newly-inaugurated Shershah Bridge built on Northern Bypass collapsed on Sept 1, 2007.

Chairman of the National Highway Authority (NHA) Chaudhry Altaf Ahmed, ex-chairman retired major-general Farrukh Javed, operation member Raja Nowsherwan, general manager (construction) Mohammed Yousaf Barakzai, ex-general manager (construction) retired colonel Tahseen-ul-Haq, former planning member Syed Najamul Hassan, M/s Engineering Consultants International Limited (ECIL) officials Zaheer Mirza, Khaild Mirza and Naveed Mirza were booked in the case registered on an apex court order on April 7 last year.

The prosecution witness, Asim Amin, appeared before the additional district and sessions judge (west) Gulshan Ara Chandio and deposed that he joined the NHA in December 2003 as general manager design and in July 2001 a contract for the design of Northern Bypass was executed between NHA chairman and Khalid Mirza of the ECIL.

However, the original documents were not available with the prosecution and the court directed the witness to produce all the documents in court on Feb 19.Meanwhile, the court reserved its order on an acquittal application moved by Raja Nowsherwan under Section 265-K of the criminal procedure code till Feb 12. The court also reserved the order on a re-investigation report till Feb 12.

On the application of the NHA chairman, the city police chief constituted a three-member inquiry board in August last year for re-investigation of the case.

On Oct 30, 2010 DIG (investigation) Iftikhar Hussain Tarrar, who headed the inquiry board, filed the report that found all the accused innocent.

The accused were earlier booked in the case (FIR No 181/2010) for their alleged negligence committed during the constriction of bridge under Sections 322 (punishment for qatl-bis-sabab), 431 (mischief by injury to public road, bridge, river or channel), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees) and 337-H (punishment for hurt by rash or negligent act) of the Pakistan Penal Code at the SITE police station.