KARACHI, Dec 1: A policeman deposed before a sessions court on Saturday that he had signed under duress the memo of arrest of an accused allegedly involved in the murder of a judicial officer.

The accused, Sajid Khan, has been charged with killing his wife, judicial magistrate Shaista Hamid, within the remit of the New Town police station in Sept 2005.

Constable Noman Mazhar, a witness to the memo of arrest, appeared in the court and deposed that he had nothing to say about the arrest of the accused since it was done in his absence. The witness testified that his superiors had forced him to sign the memo of arrest and he had been left with no option but to obey their order.

Interestingly, the public prosecutor did not request the court to declare the witness hostile under the Qanun-i-Shahadat Order though he deviated from his previous statement recorded by the investigation officer under Section 161 of the criminal procedure code.

The extended absence of IO Mohammad Rafiq also irked the court and Additional District and Sessions Judge (east) Nadeem Ahmed Khan issued non-bailable arrest warrant against him till Dec 4.

The prosecution has so far examined over 10 witnesses and the IO was the last witness to be examined in the case.

According to the prosecution, the accused was a guard of the judicial officer and they got married after she got a divorce from her first husband in July 2005. Later, she demanded Khula (separation) and on Sept 3, 2005 the accused killed her at their house by covering her nose and mouth with a pillow and the body was found hanging from a ceiling fan, it added.

A case (FIR 253/05) was registered against the accused on a complaint of the deceased’s brother.