PESHAWAR, Dec 3: The Peshawar High Court on Friday granted bail to three persons charged with blowing up two police posts in Buner district last year.

A single bench comprising Justice Dost Muhammad Khan directed the three petitioners -- Sherzaman, Jan Said and Aurangzeb -- to furnish two sureties of Rs400,000 each.

The bench observed that faulty investigation by the police often resulted in releasing of the suspects in cases of terrorism. “Had the police conducted proper investigation in these cases, the suspected militants would have been convicted by the courts,” Justice Dost Muhammad observed.

The bench regretted that when courts set free an accused on bail due to insufficient evidence and faulty investigation, the concerned authorities always blamed the courts and did not accept their incompetence.

Advocate Khwaja Muhammad Khan Gara and Ghulam Nabi Khan appeared for the petitioners. They stated that two police posts were blown up at Gagra and Bagra areas in Buner district about which an FIR was registered on May 2, 2009.

The unknown culprits were charged under section 7 of the Anti Terrorism Act read with different sections of Pakistan Penal Code. Later, the petitioners and some other persons were arrested and charged in the instant case.

Khwaja Muhammad pointed out that the posts were destroyed when the area was under curfew.

The bench expressed astonishment as to how such offences could occur during curfew. It was observed that the law enforcing agencies acted like silent spectators when militants blew up infrastructure during curfew.