KARACHI: A local court has granted two-week time to the police investigating officer to complete an investigation in a case registered against the owner and top management of K-Electric relating to death of three youths allegedly from electrocution during the recent monsoon rains in Defence Housing Authority.

Three friends — 28-year-old Talha Tanvir, 25-year-old Faizan Saleem and 20-year-old Hamza Tariq Butt — died allegedly from electrocution on the eve of Eidul Azha on Aug 12.

The power utility’s owner Arif Naqvi, chairman Ikram Sehgal, chief operating officer Syed Moonis Alvi along with other officials were booked in a case registered under Sections 322 (manslaughter), 268 (public nuisance) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code at the Darakhshan police station.

The IO of the case appeared before judicial magistrate (South) Abdul Raqeeb Tunio and informed that no headway could be made since the investigation was yet to be completed.

IO Sub-Inspector Imtiaz further informed that letters had been sent to the Sindh government’s Electrical Inspector for Region-I of Karachi as well as the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority through high-ups requesting to provide technical assistance in investigation to determine the complainant’s allegations regarding negligence on the part of the power utility that led to the deaths.

However, the IO submitted that reports from the national power regulator as well as the electrical inspector were still awaited.

He said no arrest was made so far and requested for time to complete the investigation and submit an investigation report in the present case.

Allowing the request, the judge granted two-week time to the IO with the direction to submit the investigation report.

According to the contents of the FIR, the three friends left their residences in Defence to lodge a complaint about power outage on Sunday afternoon. They apparently suffered an electric shock when their motorcycle hit an electric pole in the knee-deep rainwater near the intersection of Khayaban-i-Sehar and Khayaban-i-Shujaat, it added.

A video of the incident had gone viral on social media showing their bodies lying in the rainwater with onlookers being terrified to go close to them fearing electric current in the water.

A case regarding deaths of the young men, all hailing from Gujrat (Punjab), was lodged against KE’s senior officials and others on a complaint of Tariq Mehmood, father of one of the deceased youths.

Remand in boy’s lynching case

A judicial magistrate remanded on Tuesday five suspects in judicial custody in a case pertaining to alleged lynching of a teenage robbery suspect by a mob.

The police booked and detained Daniyal Yousuf, Zubair Khan, Ayaz, Anas, Shariq and Masood on Aug 17 for allegedly torturing to death Rehan.

The suspects claimed that Rehan was trying to rob a house within the remit of the Bahadurabad police station.

On Tuesday, the IO of the case produced the suspects before the magistrate on expiry of their three-day physical remand in police custody.

He informed that a pistol and another instrument used in the alleged murder had been recovered on information given by the detained suspects, but their alleged absconding accomplices were yet to be tracked down.

Therefore, the IO requested for an extension in the physical remand of the five men.

However, the judge turned down the IO’s request for the suspects’ remand in police custody and remanded them in judicial custody for five days with direction to produce them on the next date.

The IO was further told to arrest other suspects, who were still absconding in the present case, and produce them before the court within two weeks.

The judge asked the IO to submit an investigation report on the next date.

According to contents of the FIR, complainant Mohammad Zaheer stated that he was present at home on Aug 17, when he saw the news regarding killing of a youth by a mob. Later, a friend phoned him and informed him about the killing of his son, it added.

It further mentioned that the complainant and other family members rushed to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), where they identified the body of Rehan.

He came to know that his son and his friend allegedly entered the bungalow to allegedly commit a robbery in Bahadurabad, where the owner Daniyal Yousuf, Zubair Khan and others tortured Rehan, who later died.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2019