Video grab from footage of the firing incident in Karachi.

ISLAMABAD: A five member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, on Friday directed the government to transfer both DG Rangers and IG Sindh over the killing of Sarfaraz Shah by Rangers personnel on Friday, DawnNews reported.

Chief Justice Iftikhar, after hearing a suo motu notice over Shah’s killing, directed the government to remove from their posts DG Rangers and Sindh inspector general of police Fayyaz Leghari.

It was in Karachi, in the southern province, where Shah was killed on Wednesday.

The court warned that if the two officials were not transferred within the next three days, their salaries will be stopped.

“Their salaries will be stopped and official benefits also withdrawn,” a court official quoted Chief Justice Iftikhar as saying.

If the government did not do so within three days, “the court itself will take action against them”, he added.

Chief Justice Iftikhar had ordered the attorney general and other senior government officials to appear in court on Friday.

“Two days have passed, people have not slept out of grief and shock and you did nothing,” the court official quoted the judge as telling them.

Chief Justice Iftikhar appointed top police official Sultan Khawaja to investigate the matter and submit his report to the court in seven days.

In a letter, the court registrar described the shooting “in cold blood” as “tantamount to extrajudicial killing by the law enforcing agency” and a “brazen violation of most essential fundamental right”.

The court also directed Secretary Interior to present a report on the incident.

Chief Justice Iftikhar also directed Karachi police and Rangers to determine if there was any criminal record against Shah.

Opinion

Editorial

Plugging the gap
06 May, 2024

Plugging the gap

IN Pakistan, bias begins at birth for the girl child as discriminatory norms, orthodox attitudes and poverty impede...
Terrains of dread
Updated 06 May, 2024

Terrains of dread

Restored faith in the police is unachievable without political commitment and interprovincial support.
Appointment rules
Updated 06 May, 2024

Appointment rules

If the judiciary had the power to self-regulate, it ought to have exercised it instead of involving the legislature.
Hasty transition
Updated 05 May, 2024

Hasty transition

Ostensibly, the aim is to exert greater control over social media and to gain more power to crack down on activists, dissidents and journalists.
One small step…
05 May, 2024

One small step…

THERE is some good news for the nation from the heavens above. On Friday, Pakistan managed to dispatch a lunar...
Not out of the woods
05 May, 2024

Not out of the woods

PAKISTAN’S economic vitals might be showing some signs of improvement, but the country is not yet out of danger....