SAHIWAL: Duty Magistrate Iqra Rehman on Sunday sent the six Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) officials involved in Sahiwal killings on seven-day judicial remand.

The suspects had been in the custody of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) since Jan 19 and they were sent on judicial remand after seven days.

Police sources said the suspects would be presented in court after seven days. The case, they said, would be dealt with under 7-ATA but the suspects were presented before the duty magistrate because of Sunday (holiday).

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A heavy contingent of police and other law-enforcement agencies were deployed in the court of the civil magistrate.

Meanwhile, Central Jail officials said CTD sub-inspector Safdar Hussain, Nasir Nawaz, Ahsan Khan, Muhammad Ramzan, Saifullah Abid and Hasnain Akbar had been shifted to the prison. They are among the 16 people who were nominated in FIR 33/19 lodged under section 302 of PPC and 7-ATA on the complaint of Muhammad Jalil, a brother of Khalil, at the Yousafwala police station.

Yousafwala SHO Imdad Hussain who is part of the 10-member JIT told Dawn that the six CTD men were in the JIT custody since the incident happened. They were shifted from the CTD, Lahore to Noorshah and Sahiwal police stations for investigation. The JIT headed by Ijaz Hussain Shah quizzed these suspects during the five-day stay in Sahiwal and also recorded statements of public eyewitnesses.

Police have also given an advertisement in Urdu newspapers through which they have asked citizens to provide any kind of evidence regarding Jan 19 killings. The SHO said the JIT had got information from social media and eyewitness accounts but the purpose of the ad was to gather more evidence.

Commenting on the question as to why the six suspects were not presented in the Anti-Terrorism Court despite registering a case under 7-ATA, Saddar DSP Falaksher (who is a member of the JIT) said “today is holiday”.

Published in Dawn, January 28th, 2019