Sacked employees of a privately-owned Pakistani power Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) gather outside the KESC office during a protest in Karachi. - File Photo

KARACHI: A court on Friday struck down an attempted murder case against the Karachi Electric Supply Company chief and others on Friday.

KESC chief executive officer Tabish Gauhar along with his two security officials was booked for allegedly asking the guards to fire at protesting workers of the power utility.

A judicial magistrate (south) after examining the police file and other records accepted the police report submitted under Section 173 of the criminal procedure code seeking cancellation of the case.

A deputy superintendent of police re-investigated the case on a court order.

However, he submitted the report in ‘C’ (cancel) class and stated that no evidence came up on record against the KESC chief during the reinvestigation of the case.

Earlier, the first investigation officer had also submitted the ‘C’ class report but the defence counsel rejected it and produced some medical evidence in court.

According to the FIR, the KESC labour union staged a protest demonstration on Aug 29 last year against non-payment of salaries to the power utility’s Gizri head office staff. It alleged that on the directive of the KESC chief executive officer, security officials opened fire on the protesting workers with the intention to kill them. The firing left a number of workers wounded, it added.

A case (FIR No.376/11) was registered under sections 324 (attempted murder), 109 (abetment) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code at the Defence police station on the complaint of a worker.

Suspect remanded A suspect who allegedly posed himself as a military official was remanded in police custody by a judicial magistrate on Friday.

The Anti-Violent Crime Cell on Thursday arrested Maqsood Ali within the remit of Gulistan-i-Jauhar police station and claimed to have seized military uniforms and illicit weapons from him.

The police said that the suspect, an administrator at a private hospital, posed himself as a brigadier and received privileges from government officials.

The investigation officer of the case produced him before a judicial magistrate (east) who handed him over to the police on a four-day physical remand.

The suspect was booked in three cases under sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) and 170 (personating a public servant) of the Pakistan Penal Code and Sections 13-D and 13-E of the Arms Ordinance.

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