PESHAWAR, July 23: The Peshawar district and sessions judge on Monday acquitted an MPA of the ruling Awami National Party, Shakil Umerzai, charged with the murder of former lawmaker Alamzeb Umerzai and three others.

The court presided over by Mr Shehbar Khan observed that the prosecution could not prove its case against the accused as the evidence on record could not connect him with the commission of the offence.

The court issued perpetual arrest warrants of four absconding accused persons in the case including Shakil’s father Bashir Umerzai, also a former MPA and leader of ANP, and his three brothers named Khalil Umerzai, Mansoor Umerzai and Afzal Umerzai.

Late Alamzeb Umerzai, a leader of PPP-S, was killed along with three other persons when he was travelling in a car in Charsadda in the limits of Parang police station on April 22, 2010. The complainant in the case was Arshad Khan, brother of Alamzeb, who had charged the five suspects in the case.

Advocates Saleem Khan and Danyal Asad Chamkani appeared for Mr Shakil and contended that the evidence on record proved that the suspect was present in a meeting at Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly at the time of occurrence of the crime. They contended that his alibi was very strong and it could not be shattered by the prosecution.

The deceased had earlier survived many attempts on his life and in two of the cases in 2002 and 2003 respectively he had charged Shakeel Umerzai, Bashir Umerzai and their other relatives.

Mr Shakil was initially granted bail by the district and sessions judge, Sardar Mohammad Irshad, on July 17, 2010. However, later on, the high court recalled his bail and allowed a bail cancellation petition of Arshad Khan. Later on, he was also denied bail by the Supreme Court.

Due to security reasons, the trial of the present case was shifted from Charsadda to Peshawar. Furthermore, the MPA Hostel was declared sub-jail for Mr Shakil as he was kept at his room No. 14 at the hostel.