KARACHI: An anti-terrorism court dismissed on Monday the bail application of an alleged Al Qaeda militant in cases pertaining to possession of explosive substance and illicit weapons.

Sheikh Adil has been charged with keeping explosive material and unlicensed weapons in October 2013 in Baloch Colony and police claimed that he was associated with Al Qaeda.

The accused, through his lawyer, moved the bail application in court. Judge Farman Ali Kanasro of the ATC-IX turned down the application after hearing arguments from both sides.

He was booked in two cases under Section 4/5 of the Explosive Substance Act and Section 23-A of the Sindh Arms Act read with Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997 at the Baloch Colony police station.

‘Fake’ lawyer sent to prison

A judicial magistrate remanded on Monday a suspect in judicial custody for illegally practising as a lawyer.

After receiving complaints, the Karachi Bar Association (KBA) had caught Ahsan Ahmed Karim from a court on Sept 13, and found cards of the association and other bar associations in his possession.

A bar official said that after verification all the documents were found forged and the suspect was handed over to police.

A case was registered under Sections 419 (punishment for cheating by personation), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document) of the Pakistan Penal Code on a complaint of the KBA at the City Courts police station.

The police produced the suspect before a judicial magistrate (south) for remand and the court sent him to prison on judicial remand.

The court also issued a notice to the prosecutor on a bail application moved by the suspect till Tuesday.

Lawyers boycott courts

Legal proceedings came to a halt at subordinate courts on Monday as lawyers observed boycott against attack on the principal of a law college.

Riaz Hussain Loond, principal of the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Law College, was wounded in a gun attack on the National Highway on Sept 13.

The Karachi and Malir bar associations had given the call for the boycott while the legal fraternity also condemned the kidnapping of Ali Mutahir Shar advocate in Khairpur and demanded his early recovery and arrest of culprits.

The Sindh Bar Council had also issued a call for province-wide strike on Monday to condemn both the incidents. The litigants suffered, courts wore a deserted look and hundreds of cases fixed for hearing at the city courts and district courts in Malir were not taken up for hearing as police did not produce under-trial prisoners in courts.

The legal work at the special courts was also disturbed as lawyers did not turn up to plead their cases. However, police produced newly-arrested suspects in courts for remand.

Published in Dawn, September 16th, 2014