KARACHI: The Sindh government on Wednesday set up a joint interrogation team (JIT) comprising officers from law enforcement and intelligence agencies to investigate the role, political association and history of the prime suspect in the 2010 murder of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Dr Imran Farooq in London, said an official.

He said the Sindh government had appointed DIG-South Dr Jameel Ahmed as head of the team which would include one each officer of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), 202 Survey Section (Military Intelligence), Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

“The JIT should investigate the matter within seven days and submit a report to this [home] department within two days from the date of completion of investigation,” said a source quoting the home department notification as saying.

“Among the five members of the JIT, so far only two have been nominated: DIG-South Dr Jameel Ahmed and deputy director of the FIA Ashraf Alam. The other officers from the ISI, MI and Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, have not yet been nominated. The home department has suggested that officers not below the rank of major from the ISI and MI be nominated for the team.”

He said suspect Moazzam Ali Khan, already in 90-day custody of the Rangers, would be interviewed by the JIT to collect more information about the high-profile murder both in Pakistan and the United Kingdom.

“The notification is short on details on the Dr Imran Farooq murder case,” said the official. “In the home department notification you would not even find Dr Imran Farooq murder case mentioned, but obviously it gives mandate to the JIT to look into the ‘criminal acts’ of Moazzam Ali Khan.”

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Monday disclosed the arrest of a “key character in the murder of MQM leader Dr Imran Farooq” in Karachi, saying that the two youngsters wanted by Scotland Yard and publicised by both the British and Pakistan media were only “tools” to execute the job.

Though the minister did not name the suspect, it became clear on Tuesday when Moazzam Ali Khan was produced in an antiterrorism court in Karachi by the Rangers. The paramilitary force informed the ATC about the 90-day preventive detention of Moazzam Ali for questioning.

The Rangers told the court that they had credible information about his involvement in targeted killings and other crimes which fell in the domain of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA). The suspect was subsequently placed under preventive detention for three months under Section 11 EEEE and in compliance with Section 11 EEEE (3) of the ATA.

“It’s believed that the man taken into custody by intelligence and security agencies was responsible for arranging visas, tickets and stay in Britain of the two suspected killers — Mohsin Ali Syed and Kashif Khan Kamran — of Dr Farooq,” said the source while explaining reasons behind the JIT formation.

“The JIT would look into the motive for Dr Imran Farooq’s murder and what connection Moazzam Ali Khan had with the assassinated leader that forced him to go to such an extent. The team would also look into different aspects of the murder, such as whether Dr Farooq’s killing was planned by Moazzam Ali Khan on his own or he was just part of a big game.”

Published in Dawn, April 16th, 2015

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