LAHORE: The Lahore High Court has been requested to stop an official Joint Investigation Team (JIT) from holding probe into the Sahiwal shooting and to constitute a judicial commission to do the job instead.

Muhammad Jalil, brother of Khalil who was gunned down along with his wife and a teenage daughter in an ‘encounter’, challenged the formation of the JIT through a writ petition.

The petitioner through his counsel submits that after the fake encounter, a false FIR was registered to label victims as terrorists. However, another FIR was lodged against the personnel of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) following a protest launched by citizens against the brutal killings.

Deceased Khalil’s brother says JIT can’t do justice

He stated that even in the second FIR the facts had been distorted to give margin to the real culprits to escape conviction.

He pleaded that since the high-ups of law enforcement agencies were involved in the killings, the JIT made by the government could not reach a just decision. He said the ministers had been changing their statements on the incident that showed their connivance or ill-will regarding the dispensation of justice to the victims’ family.

Jalil contended that no recovery had been made so far from the arrested personnel of the CTD, which reflected apathy on part of the JIT and the level of favour being extended to the culprits. He stated the JIT had also failed to provide even a copy of police file to him despite repeated requests.

He argued that formation of a judicial commission was critical owing to non-seriousness of the government to provide justice to the victims

The petitioner requested the court to issue an order for the constitution of a judicial commission under section 3 of Punjab Tribunals of Inquiry Ordinance 1969 or under section 3 of Pakistan Commissions of Inquiry Act 2017 to dig out facts of the Sahiwal incident.

In the meantime, he urged that court to declare the formation of the JIT illegal and restrain it from investigating the matter.

Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2019