KARACHI: An anti-terrorism court dismissed on Friday bail applications moved by four undertrial police officials in a case pertaining to killing of a man in an alleged fake encounter.

The then assistant sub-inspector Tariq Khan along with the then constables Mohammad Shaukat, Akbar Khan and Abdul Waheed has been booked for allegedly killing 27-year-old Maqsood, who was travelling in a rickshaw, and injuring the rickshaw driver on Sharea Faisal in January during an alleged shoot-out with bandits.

On Friday, their defence counsel moved applications before the ATC-XVII judge seeking confirmation of their interim bail or otherwise.

Three suspended cops including Shaukat, Akbar Khan and Waheed were present, while Tariq Khan was absent.

The judge dismissed their plea for confirmation of interim bail. Subsequently, the three suspects present inside the courtroom were taken into custody while the court ordered the investigating officer to produce the fourth suspect on Oct 22.

Initially, the police had registered a case against alleged bandits and claimed that the victim was actually killed by the bandits, who attacked the police. Moreover, the police had also filed a charge sheet against both the suspects before an antiterrorism court.

Later, a new first information report (FIR) was registered on the complaint of Maqsood’s father on a court order in which he maintained that the police party was involved in the murder, not the bandits.

Thereafter, the reinvestigation of the case was ordered.

Later, the investigating officer added Section 7 of the anti-terror law in the FIR.

It may be recalled that the police had filed an interim charge sheet before the magistrate on March 24, in which ASI Tariq was named as the main suspect for killing Maqsood and wounding his rickshaw driver friend Abdul Rauf, while policemen Akbar and Waheed were charge sheeted for not adopting proper strategy to arrest the bandits and trying to conceal the facts about the killing of young Maqsood.

The interim report had further said that ASI Tariq and Akbar were armed and they did not adopt a proper strategy to apprehend the bandits, adding that the ASI’s firing had left Maqsood dead and his friend wounded and during the investigation the police party had also deliberately tried to screen the facts in order to save themselves.

Eighteen testify in Baldia factory case

Eighteen more relatives of the Baldia factory workers have recorded their testimonies before an antiterrorism court in the Baldia factory fire case.

The ATC-VI judge, who is conducting the trial in the judicial complex inside the Karachi central prison, summoned remaining witnesses to record their statements and fixed the matter on Oct 18.

Nine accused — including Muttahida Qaumi Movement lawmaker Rauf Siddiqui; Abdul Rehman, alias Bhola; and Zubair, alias Chariya — have been charged with setting ablaze a garments factory in Baldia Town with the help of its four gatekeepers — Shahrukh, Fazal Ahmed, Arshad Mehmood and Ali Mohammad.

The prosecution claimed that the suspects acted on the instruction of the then head of the MQM Karachi Tanzeemi Committee, Hammad Siddiqui, after the factory owners did not pay protection money.

On Thursday, the matter was fixed for recording statements of 18 prosecution witnesses in the case.

The detained suspect Abdul Rehman, alias Bhola, was also produced.

The witnesses, including a woman, deposed that they were legal heirs of the deceased workers.

They deposed that their relatives went to work at the factory as usual on Sept 11, 2012. The relatives said through the media they came to know that their relatives, among other workers, had been caught up in a deadly fire.

They testified that they heard the news about the fire at the Ali Enterprises and rushed to the site, but found the building in flames and the rescuers were trying to put out the fire.

The witnesses further testified that most of their relatives’ bodies were not identifiable when the rescuers finally retrieved them from the building.

They said they had gone through the lengthy procedures of DNA collection and matching after which they came to know their relatives had died.

After recording their testimonies, the judge summoned other prosecution witnesses and adjourned the hearing till Oct 18.

There are around 670 witnesses listed by the prosecution in the case. However, around 70 of them were given up by the prosecution.

Published in Dawn, October 13th, 2018