KARACHI, Nov 5: The Supreme Court admitted on Wednesday a provincial government petition for leave to appeal against the acquittal of police officials who allegedly killed a person in custody to falsely claim a hefty reward carried on his head by a notorious dacoit.
Prosecutor-General Shahadat Awan submitted in the petition that according to the prosecution and the complainant father of the deceased, Rasul Bakhsh was picked up from Sakrand, Nawabshah, and brought to Karachi by the personnel of the Lyari Task Force. Rasul Bakhsh was tortured to death in custody but police superintendent Chaudhry Mohammad Aslam Khan and members of his task force claimed that the deceased was proclaimed offender Mashooq Brohi and that he was killed in an encounter with police. The prosecution submitted a charge-sheet against 52 police officials in a Nawabshah sessions court.
The trial had hardly commenced when SP Aslam, deputy superintendent Irfan Ali Bahadar and inspector Mir Farosh moved the Sindh High Court for quashment of proceedings and their acquittal as, according to them, the case against them was fabricated and there was no possibility of the trial resulting in any conviction. An SHC judge allowed the appeal and ordered the acquittal of all 52 accused. The prosecutor-general submitted that among other infirmities, the high court ordered suffered from extension of relief to all the accused. It could only have provided relief to the petitioners.
The bench had issued notices to the respondent police officials on the previous date and Advocate M. Ilyas Khan filed powers of attorney on behalf of respondents Aslam Khan, Irfan Bahadar and inspector Mir Farosh. He sough time for preparing his brief and a three-member bench comprising Justice Mohammad Moosa K. Leghari, Justice Zia Pervez and Justice Sabihuddin Ahmed allowed the request.
Adjourning the hearing to a date in office, the bench ordered that notices to SP Umar Shahid and 48 other respondents should be served through the capital police officer to ensure their appearance personally or through counsel on the next date.
Park restored
Justice Gulzar Ahmed of the Sindh High Court, meanwhile, ordered an immediate restoration of a public park on plot number ST-10 (near Schon Circle), Block 9, Clifton.
The order was passed on a suit instituted by Mrs Suraiya Zahoor through Advocate Khwaja Shamsul Islam. The plaintiff alleged that a big chunk of the over two-acre park had illegally been occupied by a builder and developer and was being used as a parking lot for his commercial complex ‘The Forum’. She said an amenity plot meant to be a public park could not be put to any other use.
The court asked its nazir to take over the park and post guards there, if necessary, at the expense of the plaintiff. If he met any resistance from any quarter, the nazir could seek police assistance to restore the park immediately.
Name struck off ECL
A division bench consisting of Justices Mrs Qaiser Iqbal and Syed Mahmood Alam Rizvi, meanwhile, directed the interior ministry to remove the name of Mrs Fakhar Khurshid, executive district officer for education, Hyderabad.
The petitioner EDO, a grade 20 officer, submitted through Advocate Mahfoozyar Khan that her name was said to have been placed on the ECL in July 2006 arbitrarily and without any notice to her. She had gone abroad without any let or hindrance but the fact that her name had been placed on the ECL constituted a violation of her fundamental right to the freedom of movement. Advocate Khan cited the case of Wajid Shamsul Hasan and other superior court judgments that a ban on movement could not be clamped with specifying reason.
Doctor’s transfer stayed
Another division bench comprising Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali and Justice Khalid Ali Z. Qazi, meanwhile, stayed the transfer of Dr Shariq Ali, Burns Centre in-charge and assistant professor, Dow University of Health Sciences. The petitioner submitted through Advocate Masooda Siraj that he was highly qualified burn and trauma care expert and was appointed the Burns Centre in-charge in view of his qualifications. He agreed to serve as project director of the city district government’s rescue and emergency service for one year.
The appointment was purely contractual and was stipulated to last one year. However, his services were transferred to the department of plastic surgery so that he could be released to join the CDGK.
Staying the operation of the impugned order, the bench issued a pre-admission notice to the respondent university and asked it to submit its para-wise comments by Nov 14. By Shujaat Ali Khan.
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