FAISALABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz MPA Rana Shoaib Idrees has finally joined the investigation and submitted his statement to the investigation officer following strict instructions of Anti-Terrorism Court judge Ishtiaq Ahmad.

The MPA has joined the investigation 40 days after allegedly attacking a police station and thrashing policemen with the help of his accomplices.

On Friday, Rana Shoaib appeared in the Khurrianwala police station along with MPA Usman Kharal, former secretary bar Saifur Rehman Bhatti, who is also his close relative, lawyers and dozens of his supporters.

Sources told Dawn that the MPA had appeared in court on Thursday last to seek extension in his bail. During the proceedings the police informed the judge that the MPA had repeatedly been summoned for investigation but he did not bother to comply with the direction.

The judge directed the accused to submit his statement to the police on Friday. The court also directed senior officers to remain present in the police station when the MPA would join investigation.

They said prior to the direction of the ATC court, the MPA had not been submitting his statement and had even met SSP (Investigation) Bilal Umar and Jaranwala SP Arif Shahbaz Wazir fearing that the police would proceed against him. The MPA, therefore, kept expressing distrust on the police.On July 19 last, the MPA and more than 50 of his accomplices had attacked the Khurrianwala police station, thrashed policemen including sub-inspector Riasat Ali and got released three people arrested by the police on allegation of sheltering proclaimed offenders.

A case was registered against the MPA and others under sections 7-ATA, 148, 149, 186, 224, 225, 440 and 553 of PPC.

Former CPO Dr Haider Ashraf (who is now Lahore’s DIG operations) had constituted a three-member committee comprising the SSP (investigation) and the SPs of Jaranwala and CIA to probe the issue. The MPA did not appear once before the committee to give his version.

Earlier, Shoaib and his fellow parliamentarians like Rao Kashif, Usman Kharal and Naeem Gill had requested CPO Sohail Habib Tajik to appoint any senior police officer to probe the issue. Now, the MPA has to submit his one-page statement to an inspector, Ghulam Asghar.

Faisalabad District Bar Association President Tanvirur Rehman Randhawa had recently met the CPO and discussed the issue of Rana Shoaib. Sources said the CPO assured them that issue would be dealt with on merit.

A parliamentarian told Dawn that the party was embroiled in a crisis and was not in a position to support Rana Shoaib. He said some of the parliamentarians had also met Governor Mohammad Sarwar with a request to initiate a judicial inquiry into the issue but the governor did not extend any help and asked the accused to join investigation.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2014