KARACHI, Dec 14: A judicial magistrate on Wednesday ordered the release of a suspect in a case pertaining to the May12 carnage for want of evidence. Wamiq Atiq Siddiqui was charged with allegedly rioting and killing an employee of Lyari General Hospital, Pervez Aslam, on Rashid Minhas Road within the remit of the Sharea Faisal police station on May 12, 2007.

Over 50 people were killed and more than 100 vehicles torched on May 12, 2007 when Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry arrived in Karachi.

The investigation officer of the case earlier submitted a report in the court of a magistrate in ‘A’ class under Section 173 of the criminal procedure code.

He stated that no evidence came up during the course of investigation against the suspect.

The judicial magistrate (east) Malik Mohammad Akhtar accepted the police report and ordered the release of the suspect.

The case (FIR 241/2007) was registered under Sections 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) and 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 435 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage etc) and 324 (attempt to commit premeditated murder), 302 (punishment for premeditated murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

It’s worth noting here that last month the administrative judge of ATCs had ordered the release of Wamiq Siddiqui and another suspect in the Tahir Plaza tragedy also, after the case investigation officer filed a report under Section 169 (release of accused when evidence deficient) of the CrPC.