ISLAMABAD: Confusion prevails over the whereabouts of the the driver of Federal Ombudsperson for Protection against Harassment of Women at the Workplaces Kashmala Tariq.

According to sources, the driver was in police custody whereas the police deny that he has been arrested in connection with the fatal traffic accident in Islamabad.

Four people were killed and two others injured when a Lexus crashed into a Mehran car and a motorcycle on Srinagar Highway on Monday night.

The sources said though there was no ground to formally arrest the driver, he was still in police custody.

However, SP Amjad Buttar, director media of the capital police, when contacted, denied that he had been arrested.

“The driver has neither been arrested nor in police custody; the police could not arrest him as he has not been nominated in the case,” SP Buttar said.

The police had detained him after the accident but he was later released on a personal guarantee that he would appear before investigators when asked, SP Buttar said, adding that he was also a witness to the accident.

Sources in the police told Dawn that Ms Tariq and her husband had told investigators that their driver was behind the wheel of the Lexus when it hit the car.

They also asked the investigators to verify their statements, adding that the son was riding another vehicle bearing an official number plate.On the other hand, Kashmala Tariq’s son, who is nominated in the case, appeared before the police and recorded his statement.SP Buttar confirmed that Ms Tariq’s son had appeared before the investigators and recorded his statement.

Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2021