KARACHI: Police informed the administrative judge of the antiterrorism courts on Saturday that they were still clueless about the assailants who killed four policemen in the SITE area last month.

An assistant sub-inspector and three constables, who were sitting at a roadside eatery for Iftar, were gunned down by armed motorcyclists on June 23.

The investigating officer, an inspector of the Counter-Terrorism Department, submitted an investigation report, commonly known as A-class report, before the administrative judge of the ATCs, Karachi, stating that despite many efforts, the whereabouts of the assailants were not known since they found no clue during the investigation conducted so far.

The A-class reports are filed when police failed to arrest or trace the accused and wanted to put the investigation of such cases on the back burner.

The administrative judge sent the case to one of the trial courts (ATCs) with direction to decide it in accordance with the law.

According to the prosecution, ASI Mohammed Yusuf and constables Shabbir, Khalid and Israr had come to a restaurant, located between the Siemens and Habib Bank traffic intersections, as per their routine for Iftar. Three of them had just sat down at the eatery while their fourth colleague was reaching there when the armed pillion-riders targeted them.

A case was registered under Sections 302 (premeditated murder), 324 (attempted murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code read with Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.

Benazir’s ex-aide sent to prison

The same court remanded a close aide of slain former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in judicial custody in two cases pertaining to possessing explosives and an illicit weapon.

Police claimed to have arrested Mushtaq Ali Bhutto, said to be a cousin of the assassinated PPP chairperson, who also served as an adviser during one of her stints as premier, on July 19 in a Gulshan-i-Iqbal locality for allegedly keeping a hand grenade and an unlicensed pistol.

After the end of his three-day remand, the IO produced the suspect before the administrative judge and sought extension in his custody.

However, the defence lawyer submitted that the suspect was being subjected to political victimisation and was framed in the cases.

He maintained that the Rangers had taken his client into custody from the parking lot of an apartment in Gulistan-i-Jauhar Block 17. He added that he had also remained in the custody of law enforcement agencies last year. The administrative judge sent the suspect to prison on judicial remand and directed the investigating officer to submit an investigation report.

The cases were registered under Sections 4/5 of the Expl­osive Substances Act, 1908 and Section 23(1)(a) of the Sindh Arms Act, 2013 read with Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 at the Gulshan-i-Iqbal police station.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2017