LAHORE: There is an effort to spread the word that was initially given by Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat on Tuesday about Zeeshan Javed, one of the four victims of the Sahiwal shooting.

Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan and Additional Chief Secretary Faisal Asghar Sahoo held a briefing for senior media persons here on Wednesday to tell them the government had been provided with credible information that Zeeshan had links with two terrorists who were killed in Faisalabad in an intelligence-based operation on Jan 15.

They said the car driven by Zeeshan belonged to Adeel Hafeez, one of the terrorists killed in Faisalabad.

The ACS said the car was spotted twice in Faisalabad on Jan 14 and Jan 15. He said the security agencies had also collected evidence pertaining to the conversation of Zeeshan with the two terrorists (killed in Faisalabad).

He further claimed that the two activists of Daesh who were killed in Gujranwala division last week had stayed at the home of Zeeshan. He also showed a selfie of Zeeshan with one of the terrorists killed in Faisalabad.

Relatives block Ferozepur Road again, seek judicial probe

When some journalists wanted to know if the selfie and `phone recording’ was enough to declare Zeeshan as a terrorist, both the minister and the ACS said the JIT had started its detailed probe into the case and its findings would be shared with the media. Answering a question, the ACS reportedly admitted that the Sahiwal operation was badly planned and executed by the Counter Terrorism Department.

Sources said the removal of additional IG Operations Punjab Azhar Hameed Khokhar had shocked many in the police department as they believed that he had nothing to do with the entire episode.

They said the Punjab government took action against him when it was informed that Khokhar had been looking after police affairs on behalf of the IGP.

The government was told that Khokhar remained largely indifferent to the high-profile case. Neither he submitted his report on the Sahiwal incident nor briefed the IGP. Consequently, the government was recommended to remove him as well, the official said.

Meanwhile, a senior official requesting not to be named told Dawn the investigation of the both the cases registered in Sahiwal had been transferred to the JIT headed by Additional IG Ijaz Hussain Shah. The CTD has been stopped from investigating the case lodged by it on the same incident

PROTEST: Rejecting the Punjab government action against officials in the Sahiwal shooting, relatives and friends of deceased Khalil and Zeeshan blocked Ferozepur Road at 5pm. They said surrender of three senior officials to the federal government was not a punishment.

They rejected official claim that Zeeshan was a terrorist. How come a selfie and telephonic conversion could establish that he was a terrorist, they asked. Giving the government 48 hours to accept their demands, they lifted the road blockade at around midnight.

Talking to media, they demanded resignation of the chief minister, information ministers of both federal and Punjab governments and the law minister.

They demanded formation of a judicial commission which should give its findings in a month

They also demanded transfer of investigation in both the cases registered in Sahiwal to Lahore.

Published in Dawn, January 24th, 2019