KARACHI, Aug 18: An anti-terrorism court on Wednesday put off the hearing of the Macedonian Consulate bomb blast case against nine workers of the banned Harkatul Mujahideen Al-Aalmi after recording the statements of the accused.
Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5, who is conducting the trial inside the Central Prison, fixed Aug 20 for hearing the final arguments from the prosecution and defence attorneys.
The accused - Syed Sohail Akhtar alias Mustafa, Zafar Iqbal alias Sohail, Naeem Rafi alias Nimmi, Mohammed Atif, Sameerullah alias Somi, Mohammed Khalid alias Shahzad, Abdur Razzaq alias Bhiya, Syed Ahmed Kazmi alias Shahbaz and Mehmoodullah - denied the allegations.
They also disputed the time and place of their respective arrests and stated that they had already been in police custody for a week before the police announced their arrest.
The accused were charged with committing a bomb blast after stabbing two men and a woman to death on December 5, 2002 inside the honorary consulate of Macedonia, situated at Phase-IV of DHA.
According to the prosecution, the accused entered the consulate building late night and stabbed Hameed Hector Masih, Mohammed Asif and Ghazala Parveen to death. They planted an explosive device which they detonated with a remote control after leaving the consulate. The intruders also took away a computer and printer from the spot.
They were charged with the offences under Section 302, 395 and 427 of the Pakistan Penal Code, Sections 3 and 4 of the Explosive Act and Section 7 (b) of the Anti-terrorism Act. Special public prosecutor Mazhar Qayyum examined in all 19 prosecution witness.
PAMPHLETS CASE: An anti-terrorism court put off the hearing of the pamphlets case against a London-born doctor after recording the statements of first four witnesses.
The case against Dr. Ismail Shaikh was registered by the Clifton police for distributing pamphlets containing material against the US, Jews and Pakistan. According to prosecution, the 30-year-old dentist was the member of Palestine-based proscribed organisation, Hizbul Tehreer. He was arrested while distributing the pamphlets in front of a mosque in Clifton after Isha prayers on July 7.
The prosecution witnesses - SHO Inspector Mohammed Zubair, Sub-inspector chaudhry Mohammed Ishaq and Head Constable Saghir ul Haq - were also cross-examined by defence counsel Sultan Mohammed Khan.
PW Inspector Zubair deposed that he was heading the police patrol which spotted the doctor giving away the pamphlets to the passersby in front of the Moti Masjid. The PW stated that Dr. Ismail carried four different types of pamphlets.
He said the pamphlets contained material against the policies of the United States and Pakistan. One of the pamphlets incited people to join the proscribed Hizbul Tehreer.
SHO Zubair submitted that the HT activist was initially apprehended for causing breach of peace under Section 151 of the PPC. Later, a case was registered against him under Section 11-F (2) (6) of the Anti-terrorist Act for inciting people to join a proscribed organisation.
The offence involves maximum punishment of six-month rigorous imprisonment. The doctor had recently come from London and was residing in Nazimabad. He first came here in 1999 and married his cousin. Later, he divorced his wife in 2002 and left for London. He solemnised his second marriage in London and he returned here few month ago.