GUJRAT: Jhelum Saddar police on Monday registered a case against former PML-N MPA Nadeem Khadim Garmala and his cousin Rashid Garmala for injuring PTI workers on Sunday.

The suspects had fired on a PTI rally at Garmala village when the workers were going to attend Imran’s public meeting in Jhelum.

Nadeem is the scion of the incumbent MNA of ruling party Khadim Husain Garmala and nephew of MPA Laal Husain whereas other suspect Rashid is nephew of the MNA and is the Jhelum tehsil municipal officer.

Read: Firing at PTI workers enroute to Jhelum rally, 8 injured

District Police Officer Sarfraz Khan Virk told Dawn a case (537) had been lodged with the Jhelum Saddar police against two nominated suspects Nadeem Khadim and Rashid under Section 324/34 of the PPC on the report of Adeel, the brother of the critically injured youth Adnan, 21, of the same village.

The DPO said none of the suspects had so far been arrested as investigation was under way to ascertain the reason for firing.

He said since the complainant had nominated only two men, police released ex-MPA’s three gunmen who were earlier taken into custody on Sunday.

He said five of the nine injured admitted to Jhelum DHQ Hospital had been discharged. Adnan, who was shifted to Rawalpindi DHQ, is said to be stable.

Punjab PTI President Ejaz Chaudhry had accused the local PML-N workers of firing on the rally; however ex-MPA Nadeem Khadim said his guards had allegedly resorted to aerial firing in self defence after some PTI workers fired on their house at Garmala village.

Nadeem had been elected as MPA in the 2008 elections on PML-N ticket, but he was disqualified by the Supreme Court for holding the dual nationality of Britain. After the verdict, his father Khadim Husain had contested the by-election as an independent candidate in December 2012 and made it to the assembly.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2014