LAHORE: A Lahore High Court full bench will announce on Wednesday (today) verdict on two sets of appeals challenging a trial court’s decision on a private complaint of the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT)/Idara Minhajul Quran regarding 2014 Model Town incident.

The PAT in its appeal had challenged the decision of an anti-terrorism court to the extent of not summoning 12 people (all former parliamentarians of the PML-N), nominated by the party in its private complaint.

While former inspector general of Punjab police, Mushtaq Ahmad Sukhera and 127 other government officials had challenged the decision to the effect of their summoning by the trial court in the complaint moved by the PAT.

The bench headed by Justice Muhammad Qasim Khan had reserved the verdict on June 27 after Punjab Prosecutor General Ehtesham Qadir and lawyers of appellants had concluded their arguments. Justice Aalia Neelum and Justice Sardar Ahmad Naeem were the other members of the bench.

The prosecutor general had stated in his arguments that the trial court indicted the suspects in the Model Town incident case and recording of evidence was in process. He said the evidence recorded by the judicial inquiry tribunal could not be used before any other forum for civil or criminal proceedings.

He was of the view that the appellant (PAT) failed to establish its charges against the 12 respondents, including former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and former chief minister Shahbaz Sharif before the trial court. He rejected an argument of the PAT that the incident was pre-planned or a conspiracy.

The 12 parliamentarians, now former, against whom the ATC had rejected the complaint, include former premier Nawaz Sharif, former chief minister Shahbaz Sharif, now Punjab Assembly opposition leader Hamza Shahbaz, former law minister Rana Sanaullah, former railway minister Khwaja Saad Rafiq, former defence minister Khwaja Asif, former information minister Pervez Rashid, former state minister Abid Sher Ali, former interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, then personal secretary to chief minister Syed Tauqir Shah, former home secretary Azam Suleman and then Lahore Commissioner Rashid Mahmood Langrial.

In April this year, Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar had taken suo motu notice of delayed proceedings of the Model Town incident case after meeting families of the victims.

The chief justice had directed the trial court to conclude its proceedings on a day-to-day basis and also the LHC to decide within two weeks all appeals pending against the decisions of the trial court.

At least 14 persons were killed and over 100 injured during the anti-encroachment operation outside the Model Town residence of PAT chief Dr Tahirul Qadri on June 17, 2014.

Published in Dawn, September 26th, 2018