PESHAWAR, Dec 23: The Peshawar High Court on Friday granted bail to a person charged with drug trafficking. A bench of Chief Justice Tariq Pervez ordered that accused-petitioner Sher Bahadur should be released after furnishing two sureties of Rs500,000 each.

Police had arrested him in connection with an FIR registered on July 20, 1999.

Police claimed that they had a tip on smuggling of narcotics in a car and cordoned off the road. Spotting the car, they signalled it to stop, but the driver tried to speed away.

The prosecution claimed that people in the car had started firing at the police party, injuring an assistant sub-inspector.

However, police claimed to have chased the car and arrested two persons, Baghicha Gul and Bukhtiar, while the driver escaped.

Police also claimed to have seized 550kg of charas, 2kg of heroin, 2 hand-grenades and a Kalashnikov from the car.

Some time later, police arrested Sher Bahadur, stating that he was the owner of the car and involved in the smuggling bid.

Chairman of the Voice of Prisoners Noor Alam Khan appeared for the petitioner and contended that his client had been implicated in the case. The petitioner had not been arrested from the spot and none of the witnesses had identified him, he said.—Bureau Report