PESHAWAR: A single-member Peshawar High Court bench on Monday confirmed the pre-arrest bail of Supreme Court Bar Association president Abdul Lateef Afridi, who was charged by the counter-terrorism department (CTD) with abetting the killing of an anti-terrorism court’s judge and his three family members last month.

Justice Mohammad Nasir Mehfooz accepted Lateef Afridi’s bail plea after the completion of arguments by both sides.

The petitioner was given an interim pre-arrest bail by the court on Apr 7.

Gunmen had ambushed ATC judge Aftab Afridi, who was posted to Swat, near the Ambar Interchange on the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway on Apr 4 as he was travelling in his vehicle.

The attack left the judge, his wife, a daughter-in-law and her three-year-old son dead and the driver and a guard injured.

The police registered FIR of the attack on the complaint of the judge’s son, Abdul Majid Afridi, who named several people, including Lateef Afridi’s son,for the killings.

Later, Lateef Afridi was also charged with abetting the crime. A blood feud was stated to be the cause of attack.

A panel of lawyers, including Abdul Samad Khan, Syed Mubashir Shah and Syed Ali, appeared for the petitioner in the court and contended that their client was not charged in the FIR and was not charged directly for the commission of the offence.

They argued that there was no evidence on record to show that the petitioner had either provided any weapon to the attackers or participated in any meeting wherein the plan to kill the judge was made.

The counsel insisted that the petitioner suffered from multiple diseases and that his bad health didn’t allow him to be part of any murder plan.

They added that the implication of Mr Lateef in the case was a conspiracy.

The lawyers contended that the petitioner was a law-abiding citizen and there was no apprehension that he would abscond from the law.

The counsel appearing for the complainant contended that the petitioner had a close nexus with the accused.

He added that the cause of murder was fully proved as both families had old enmity.

The counsel said two of the arrested killers had recorded their confessional statements, which clearly supported the prosecution case.

Earlier, the police had claimed that they had arrested five accused, including two suspected shooters Mohammad Zakir Shah and Shahezad and three masterminds Bilal Afridi, Daud Afridi and Aziz Afridi.

Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2021