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Published 02 Jul, 2012 02:58am

Lock-up murder Police connivance alleged in FIR

LAHORE, July 1: The family of an under-trial prisoner, Shafqat Nazir, who was shot dead by a convict at the judicial lock-up of the District and Sessions Courts on Saturday, nominated six people in the FIR lodged on Sunday and suspected involvement of policemen in the ‘murder conspiracy’.

However, the police teams constituted to arrest the suspects didn’t make any breakthrough despite conducting raids.

Islampura police also booked an ASI and seven police constables, who were escorting the prisoners, in another case lodged under Section 155/C of Police Order 2002.

Haji Amjad Ali of Johar Town complained in the FIR, lodged under sections 302, 324, 186, 353, 120, 109, 148, 149 of the PPC, 13/20/65 of Arms Ordinance and 7-ATA, that he along with his two brothers and a cousin, was delivering food items to his brother Shafqat after he appeared in the court of additional session judge Mushtaq Ahmad when suspects Ahmad Raza, Muhammad Asif, Hassan Liaqat, Ghulam Haider, Shaukat Ali, Mukhtar Ahmad, Aurangzeb Akhtar and their four unknown accomplices entered the judicial lock-up around 12.30pm.

The suspects wiped out their weapons while one of them, Ahmad, handed over a pistol to a prisoner, later identified as Muhammad Azam, the FIR said.

The complainant said the four attackers – Azam, Ahmad Raza, Aurangzeb, Ghulam Haider and Hassan – opened fire on Shafqat, leaving him dead on the spot.

Later, indiscriminate firing by other suspects created panic among judges, lawyers and litigants. The suspects fled the scene after firing indiscriminately. The firing by police guards also killed Azam.

The complainant said some policemen also connived with Ahmad Raza for killing Shafqat.

About the motive of the attack, he said that Ahmad Raza suspected that his brother Ali Raza was murdered by Shafqat.

According to second FIR lodged by SI Raza Nisar, in-charge of Sessions Courts judicial lock-up, ASI Manzoor Ahmad and four constables -- Waseem, Yasir, Amjad Ali and Faiz Ahmad -- brought convict Muhammad Azam from Sahiwal Central Jail first to the Lahore district courts in connection with a hurt case and then to the sessions court for hearing into a narcotics case.

Escort in-charge ASI Manzoor asked Raza to detain Azam in the lock-up, but latter told him to keep the prisoner in prisons van and bring him back after court hearing.

The complainant said ASI Manzoor later said that the prisoner needed to go to toilet. Three constables -- Sharif, Abdur Razzaque and Yaseen took Azam to the lock-up and got him confined there.

He alleged the judicial guard and on-duty constables didn’t frisk Azam properly and later the suspect shot dead Shafqat.

The complainant said policemen concerned showed negligence and dereliction of duty which led to the incident.

Investigation SSP Abdur Razzauqe Cheema and City SP (Investigation) Rana Shujaat Ali didn’t take calls when this reporter tried to get updated about arrest of the suspects.

Meanwhile, police handed over the body of Shafqat to his family after an autopsy. The post-mortem examination of Azam couldn’t be done on Sunday.

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