KARACHI: Judicial magistrates on Friday granted bail to five suspects, including three women, in two cases pertaining to wrongful confinement of over 35 girls.

The girls mostly hailing from the Bajaur Agency were recovered from three different areas of the city by the police a couple of days ago.

Five suspects were held for allegedly confining the girls and the police produced them before two magistrates.

Hameeda Khatoon, Ayub Siddiqi and Imran were produced before a judicial magistrate (central) and the Supermarket police informed the court that they were arrested following the recovery of 26 girls from a house in Liaquatabad and seven from Jamshed Town.

The police further said that a girl had been reunited with her family in Karachi while the remaining were shifted to the Darul Banaat child protection unit in Shanti Nagar in Gulshan-i-Iqbal and they would also be handed over to their parents after verification.

The magistrate, Raj Kumar D. Lohano, ordered the release of the suspects on bail and asked the police to examine if they had any criminal record.

The court granted bail to the female suspect against the surety bond of Rs50,000 and Rs100,000 each to other suspects. The hearing was adjourned till Dec 10.

Meanwhile, the Ibrahim Hyderi police brought Sultana and Hameeda Rehman before a judicial magistrate (Malir) and submitted that they had allegedly confined three girls in a flat near Korangi Crossing. The police also produced the recovered girls.

The magistrate, Hasan Ali Kalwar, granted bail to the suspects against the surety bond of Rs10,000 each and asked the police to shift the girls to the Darul Banaat child protection unit. However, the court sent both suspects to prison till Dec 12 since they failed to furnish the surety amount.

The cases were registered under Sections 342 (wrongful confinement) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code at the Super Market and the Ibrahim Hyderi police stations.

Kidnapper sent to jail for life

An anti-terrorism court on Friday sentenced an accused to life imprisonment in two cases of kidnapping for ransom.

The court found Mohammad Ayub guilty of abducting Taj Mohammad in Gulshan-i-Iqbal in December 2007 and Syed Kamal and his nephew Syed Nasir in Shah Faisal Colony in October 2008 and demanding ransom for their release.

Judge Mohammad Javed Alam of ATC-V, who conducted the trial in both cases, awarded life term in each case after recording the evidence of witnesses and final arguments from both sides.

According to the prosecution, the accused had released the captives after collecting the ransom. The police had arrested Ayub and Abdul Rahman in 2008 within the jurisdiction of Sharea Faisal. Later, Abdul Rehman escaped from the custody on the premises of the city courts.

The cases were registered under Sections 365-A (kidnapping for extorting property, etc.) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code read with Section 7 (e) of the Anti-terrorism Act, 1997 at the Gulshan-i-Iqbal and Shah Faisal Colony police stations. Abdul Rehman, Javed, Habibullah and Fateh Mohammad are the absconders in these cases.

Three convicted

Another anti-terrorism court convicted on Friday three accused in five cases of extortion, illicit weapons and explosive substances.

Salman, alias Lamba, Sufyan, alias Rabbani, and Junaid Ali, alias Manda, have been charged with demanding protection money from a shopkeeper at Lighthouse earlier this year while Salman was also booked in another case for possessing explosive material.

Moreover, all the accused were also separately charged with carrying unlicensed weapons at the time of their arrest.

Judge Farman Ali Kanasro of ATC-IX, who conducted the trial after amalgamating the cases, sentenced all the accused to seven years in illicit weapons cases and imposed a fine of Rs50,000 each and if defaulted they will have to spend six more months in prison.

Salman and Sufyan were also awarded five and three years for two offences of extortion with fine of Rs25,000 and Rs20,000 for each convict in each offence and if not paid they will have to suffer additional six and two months in captivity.

Moreover, Salman was sentenced to seven years in prison in explosive substances case and a fine of Rs25,000 was imposed on him and in case of non-payment the convict would have to suffer an additional two months in prison.

However, all the sentences will run concurrently.

Blasphemy case against Khursheed Shah

A police report submitted to a sessions court on Friday said that an offence under the blasphemy law was not made out against Syed Khursheed Shah, opposition leader in the National Assembly.

Dr Laila Parveen of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement along with eight other applicants had moved the court for registration of a case against Mr Shah under the blasphemy law since they contended that the senior leader of Pakistan Peoples Party stated on Oct 17 during his visit to Bagh-i-Jinnah, near the mausoleum of the Quaid-i-Azam that the word ‘Muhajir’ was an expletive.

They argued that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) along with his companions had migrated from one city to another and the word ‘Muhajir’ was cited with great respect in the Quran.

On a previous hearing, the court asked the station house officer of the Brigade police station to submit his comments as why he had not entertained the applications, moved for lodging a case.

The SHO through his comments informed the court that a cognisable offence against Mr Shah was not made out and added that it was not a blasphemy, but a political issue.

The additional district and sessions judge (east) Chaudhry Waseem Iqbal adjourned the hearing till Dec 4.

Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2014