KARACHI: Questions and concerns were raised regarding the yet-to-be investigated aspects of the Parveen Rehman murder case at the annual Akhter Hameed Khan and Parveen Rehman Development Forum organised by the Orangi Pilot Project (OPP) on Sunday.

Advocate Faisal Siddiqi, a counsel in the murder case of the slain OPP director who was assassinated in March 2013, wanted an investigation into the role of two police officers in “destroying the case”, which he said would help in reaching other elements involved in the murder. He had raised the same concern about the role of the two police officers in an application written to the Inspector General of Police A.D. Khowaja.

Family and persons close to the investigation in the murder case refused to believe the police story that her murderer was killed in an encounter. According to Manghopir SHO Ashfaq Hussain Baloch, suspect Qari Bilal was killed in an encounter a day after Rehman’s murder.

The forum on Sunday was divided into two sessions. The first focused on the development work taken up by both Khan and Rehman and the second was focused on the progress of the murder case.

SP-Investigation Akhter Farooq shared key aspects of the murder case. It involved the arrest of Raheem Khan Swati, the information secretary of the district West chapter of the Awami National Party, who also had links with the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Imran Swati and Ahmed Ali Khan, alias Pappu Kashmiri.

The SP said that it was Ahmed Khan who named Raheem Swati as the prime suspect. At present, the police were looking for three absconders in the case, whereas there was a chance of one of them to be arrested soon, he added.

Advocate Siddiqi raised a few concerns and said answers were needed on two crucial aspects of the case. These aspects included the role of two police officers — then investigation officer Raja Ulfat and Manghopir SHO Ashfaq Baloch who claimed to have killed suspect Bilal in an encounter on March 14, 2013.

“So far, the police identified the person who planned the murder and arrested three people. But two more questions need answers. Why did the police try to cover up the case? Why was the initial evidence destroyed,” said Advocate Siddiqi.

The initial evidence in the case, according to him, was the gun the police allegedly seized from Qari Bilal and matched it with the empty bullet casings found on the scene of crime. This evidence was not free from manipulation, he said.

He also said that the motive for Rehman’s murder needed to be questioned too.

“Raheem [Swati] was not powerful enough to do it all by himself solely because of self-interest. If there’s a larger interest involved, which we believe there is, it needs to be investigated so that high-level players are also brought before court,” he added.

Published in Dawn January 23rd, 2017