RAWALPINDI, April 7 On the directives of the additional district and sessions judge, two separate criminal cases were registered against former City Police Officer Inayatullah Farooqi, a superintendent of police, a DSP and several other officials under the Police Order 2002 for raiding the Pindi bar and manhandling lawyers on March 15.

The first FIR (No 284) was registered with the Civil Lines police on the complaint of Chaudhry Taufeeq Asif Advocate, president District Bar Association Rawalpindi, against the former CPO, SP Potohar Sardar Maqsood, DSP Civil Lines Raja Taifoor, SHO Karim Nawaz Niazi, Inspector Azhar Shah and Sub-inspector Malik Kausar for raiding the district bar hall and arresting lawyers.

The complainant alleged that he along with other lawyers was present in the bar hall and were preparing for the lawyers` long march when the police party, comprising some 1,000 personnel and led by SP Sardar Maqsood and SHO Niazi, raided the building and sealed it off.

He alleged that the police entered the district court premises after breaking the main gate. He said the police personnel, some of whom were in plainclothes, entered the building through a door from the session courts side.

The police party was being commanded by the then CPO Inayatullah Farooqi, he said, adding the police used abusive language when he tried to stop them from manhandling the lawyers.

Later, the other police officials forcibly entered the Quaid-i-Azam hall and started torturing the lawyers, he added.

He said the police rounded up several lawyers, bundled them into police vans and sent them to judicial jail for 30 days. The police also damaged crockery of the canteen, sound system, a power generator and furniture valuing about Rs150,000 to Rs200,000. He also alleged that several lawyers were deprived of their cellphones and other valuables by the police. The police also cut off electric cables of media vans covering the event.

After failing to get their case registered with the police, the president of the district bar and his colleagues filed a petition with the court of ASJ for registration of the case against the police under the Anti-Terrorism Act, for committing robbery, manhandling lawyers and hurling threats of dire consequences on the lawyers.

The second FIR was also registered with the Civil Lines police on the complaint of Tariq Mehmood Advocate, who alleged that the police led by DSP Civil Lines, the SHO, a sub-inspector and 18 other police personnel raided his house and tortured his father.

He alleged that the police arrested him to stop him from participating in the lawyers` long march.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the police said SSP (investigation) Kamran Yousuf will investigate “purely on merit” the two cases registered against the senior police officers.

He said City Police Officer Rao Mohammad Iqbal Khan has appointed Mr Yousuf as inquiry officer.

Four of the police officers nominated in the FIRs are still posted in Rawalpindi while the then CPO, Mr Farooqi, was transferred after restoration of the PML-N government in Punjab.