KARACHI, Jan 15: An additional district and sessions judge, Central, Ahmed Nawaz Shaikh, acquitted on Tuesday two workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement in a “police encounter” case.
The workers, Anwarul Haq and Nazim Husain, were booked, in 1995, by the Gulbahar police under different sections of PPC.
The judge acquitted the two men of all charges for want of incriminating evidence.
BAIL GRANTED: An additional district and sessions judge, East, Syed Sagheer Husain Zaidi, granted bail to two Muttahida workers in an arson case.
Qazi Nadim, in charge of the party’s PIB unit, and Mohammed Hanif, former gunman of Muttahida leader Dr Farooq Sattar, were booked for setting an official jeep (GS-0662) on fire during a strike, jointly called by the Muttahida and the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz on April 7 last year.
The judge gave bail to the Muttahida men in the sum of Rs100,000 each.
DRUG TRAFFICKERS: The special anti-narcotics court, headed by Judge Ali Nawaz Pirzada, convicted four drug traffickers, including a woman, and sentenced them to different prison terms.
Ehiedu Rachael Ugoma, a Nigerian woman, was sentenced to five years’ rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs50,000 for attempting to smuggle out 650 grams of heroin.
Arrested on December 24 last year at Quaid-i-Azam International Airport by the Customs Drug Enforcement Cell officials, the woman had concealed the contraband drug, stuffed into 50 capsules, into her stomach. She excreted the capsules at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre.
The convict would have to undergo an additional six months’ RI in case of default on the payment of fine.
A Nigerian man, arrested on June 6 at the airport by the customs authorities, was given a five-year prison term with a fine of Rs50,000. Accused Eli Jonathan Tour had also concealed the heroin in his stomach. He had excreted 40 capsules, containing a total of 550 grams of heroin.
The convicted drug trafficker would have to undergo an additional six months’ RI if he failed to pay the fine.
Another Nigerian, who was arrested on August 23 last year, at the airport by the Customs Drug Enforcement Cell authorities, was sentenced to six years’ RI with a fine of Rs75,000.
Convict Lookman Baba Dunde, who had concealed 53 heroin capsules in his stomach, would have to undergo an additional six months’ RI in case of default on the payment of fine.
The judge also sentenced a local drug pusher to 10 years’ RI with a fine of one million rupees for possessing 2.1 kg charas.
Accused Arshad Ali was arrested on February 7 1999 by the Anti-narcotics Force. He would have to undergo an additional one year’s RI if he failed to pay the fine.
REJECTED: An additional district and sessions judge, East, Inamur Rahman, rejected the bail application of an accused in a fraud case.
Accused Chaudhry Pervaiz Iqbal was booked along with four others, including his wife, by the Gulistan-i-Jauhar police for defrauding Jamia Hassan bin Sabit Madressa of Rs2.7 million.
According to the complainant, Allama Abdul Ghaffar Chishti, the accused embezzled Rs1.1 million, received under the head of Zakat and Ushr, and donations amounting to Rs1.6m.
Pervaiz Iqbal and two other accused, Saeedullah and Farida Hanif, were arrested on November 1 last year.
Iqbal’s wife, Nadira Kauser, and another accused, Mohammed Afzal, are absconding in the case.