KARACHI, Aug 31: An anti-terrorism court on Saturday admitted a charge-sheet for trial in a case pertaining to a bomb attack on the convoy of a judge of the Sindh High Court.

Masoom alias Billa alias Abu Bakar and Mohammad Muavia Leghari have been booked and arrested for their alleged involvement in the June 26 attack on the motorcade of Justice Maqbool Baqar, the senior puisne judge of the SHC.

Judge Saleem Raza Baloch of the ATC-III admitted the charge-sheet for hearing and issued non-bailable warrants for the arrest of absconders as well as production orders for detained suspects till Sept 12.The court was informed that senior lawyer Ilyas Khan had been appointed special public prosecutor in the case.

The charge-sheet said that nine men, including six policemen, two Rangers personnel and the driver of the SHC judge were killed and a dozen of people, including Justice Baqar, sustained injuries.

The police arrested suspect Masoom on July 17 and during interrogation he disclosed his involvement in the bomb blast and said that Hafiz Bashir Leghari had masterminded the attack. Subsequently, the police raided the house of the alleged mastermind in Surjani Town and arrested Muavia Leghari and another suspect Qari Amin after an encounter. The alleged mastermind, who is the father of suspect Muavia, was killed in the shoot-out.

It stated that illicit weapons and explosive substance were also found in the house, adding that Muavia, Asif Chhotu, Qari Allah Dad, Sajid, Yasir Moosa and Masoom were present when the attack was planned at Leghari’s house.

Asif and Yasir rigged a snatched motorbike with explosives and Masoom and Yasir brought it to the place of the incident and Masoom was selected through a draw to detonate the explosive-laden motorbike.

Sajid and Yasir were deputed around the place of the incident to update Masoom about the arrival of the motorcade and he detonated the explosive-laden motorbike through a remote-controlled device upon the arrival of Justice Baqar’s convoy, the charge-sheet said.

Suspect Masoom also recorded his confessional statement under Section 164 of the criminal procedure code before a judicial magistrate and an eyewitness had also picked him out during an identification parade, it added.

The investigation officer had shown Rizwan alias Asif Chhotu, Atta-ur-Rehman alias Naeem Bukhari alias Bilal, Qari Khalil alias Qari Allah Dad, Sajid and Yasir Moosa as absconders in the charge-sheet and listed 64 prosecution witnesses, including Justice Baqar.

A case was registered under Sections 302 (premeditated murder), 324 (attempted murder), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees), 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 3/4 of the Explosive Substance Act read with Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 at the Aram Bagh police station.