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KARACHI, April 9: The additional district and sessions judge, West, Sikander Ali Lashari, acquitted three workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement in a police encounter case.
Arif Mian alias Arif Commando, Janu Mohammed and Qamaruddin alias Qamar Bhai had been booked on Oct 15, 1995, by the Mochko police for attempting to kill the policemen during a shootout.
The judge, however, exonerated the Muttahida men from all charges as the prosecution could not prove its case against them.
DOUBLE MURDER: The same court (ATC-5) put off the hearing of a double murder case against the chief of the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi and his two associates after recording the deposition of a prosecution witness.
The case against Lashkar chief, Akram Lahori, and his men — Ataullah and Mohammed Azam — pertained to the killing of Anver Tirmizi and Zufiqar Haider in an attack on March 11, last year within the limits of the Shah Faisal police.
Special public prosecutor, Syed Nadeem Hussain Shah, examined DSP Amir Hameed, one of the investigation officers of the case.
Mohammed Ashraf Mughul, counsel appointed for the accused on state expenses, also cross-examined the prosecution witness.
The judge, who is conducting the trial on the premises of the Central Prison, Karachi, put off the hearing till Thursday for recording the deposition of further prosecution witnesses.
BLAST CASE: Judge Feroz Mahmood Bhatti of the ATC-5 adjourned the hearing of a bomb blast case against an activist of the Harkatul Mujahideen Al-Aalmi on the request of the defence counsel.
Judge Feroz Mehmood Bhatti of the ATC-2, who is conducting the trial inside the Central Prison, fixed Thursday for the next hearing of the case Sabir Waseem.
The Aalmi worker has been charged with launching an anti-tank rocket (BM-107) that had pierced through the wall of the Commerce College on Dr. Ziauddin Ahmed Road on Nov 23, 2001.
According to prosecution, accused Waseem, with his absconding accomplice, Asif Ramzi, reached the college to fire the rocket to target Americans staying on the second and third floors of the Sheraton Hotel.
It was alleged that the two Aalmi men, carrying the rocket and its locally-made launcher in a kit bag, reached the hotel on a motorbike around 9:30pm.
The two positioned the launcher on the pushcart of a junk vendor. While accused Waseem was still trying to position the launcher to the hotel, the rocket was detonated due to a short-circuit and hit the wall of the commerce college. It landed in a classroom making an eight-inch hole in the wall.
According to bomb disposal squad, the device was an anti-tank rocket, weighing 25 kilograms with 10 to 12 kgs of explosive material.
Waseem was arrested red-handed during a shootout with the police following an attack on a prisoner van, which was carrying among others Dilawar Hussain, a worker of the banned Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan.
The van, also carrying some sectarian workers, was ambushed on Feb 28, 2002, near Bohra Pir within the limits of Nabi Bux police. Ramzi and two others, Ata ur Rahman and Naeem Bukhari, were declared absconders in this case.
During the interrogation, the police found the lower body of Waseem severely burnt.
He disclosed that he was himself injured while firing the rocket.
