KARACHI, July 12: Judicial magistrate 4, Malir Karachi, Shahzia Asif, on Friday remanded two accused Mohammad Hanif and Mohammad Imran in police custody till July 20, 2002. The accused allegedly masterminded a plan to attack the Karachi airport. Both the accused are active members of the Askari wing of the Harkatul Mujahideen Al-Almi. They were booked under FIR No 09/ 2002 lodged at the Cantt police station Karachi on charges of masterminding a plan to attack the Karachi airport with rockets. They planted four rockets near the airport on February 16 this year.

They also fired a rocket on trial basis which hit a house in Shah Faisal Colony. The police had registered a case the same day against the unknown persons. However, a watchman of the area informed the police next day that some metallic objects were lying near the airport. The police raided the place and seized five rockets and a launcher.

The two accused were brought to the anti-terrorist court where its official told the police that the sections mentioned in the FIR did not come within the jurisdiction of the ATCs, on which the accused were taken to the judicial magistrate.

Later the accused were taken amid tight security to the Sindh High Court before the administrative judge of the ATCs, Justice Shabbir Ahmed, for obtaining remand in the rocket case. But he refused to remand them as the Malir Cantt police station did not come within his jurisdiction.

The accused were then produced before Judge Shahzia Asif who remanded them in policy custody till July 20. Earlier both the accused were remanded in police custody till July 20 in the cases pertaining to the plans to assassinated President General Pervez Musharraf and the bomb blast in front of the US Consulate.

Imran and Hanif were arrested by the Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) from House No. 415, 13/A Nazimabad, Liaquatabad Town, on July 7, 2002. The rest of their accomplices- Sharib, Naveedul Hasan, Mohammad Kamran, Jamil Memon, Mohammad Ashraf, Mohammad Mustafa, Amir, Irfan, Saad, Sohail alias Bhoora, Ashfaque and Haris- are absconding.

The police also made recoveries of arms, ammunition and explosives from their house which included SMGs, MM rifles, pistols, hand grenades, bullets, anti-personnel mines, 9 rockets, and 30 Kgs of explosives.—PPI