Benazir murder case: Verdict on petition seeking probe suspension reserved
RAWALPINDI, May 25 The Lahore High Court on Tuesday reserved its judgment on a petition seeking suspension of a second investigation, this time by Federal Investigation Agency, in the murder case of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
Justice Asad Munir and Justice Ijaz Ahmed of the LHC's Rawalpindi bench withheld their verdict on the plea of Chaudhry Mohammad Aslam who had pleaded that the FIA-led joint investigation team should be stopped from carrying out investigations in the case till the outcome of the petition against the legality of reinvestigation.
Petitioner's lawyer Mohammad Asad Rajpoot said the Punjab police had already concluded their probe and sent the charge-sheet for the trial of the five accused arrested.
He said that if the FIA submitted to the court its investigation report on May 26, the petition challenging the legality of the reinvestigation would be useless and pointless. Making interior secretary, director-general of FIA, director of the special investigation group of FIA, Punjab chief secretary and city police officer of Rawalpindi as respondents, the petitioner had challenged the Aug 6, 2009, notification of the interior ministry allowing reinvestigation of the murder by FIA and halting the ongoing trial against the five accused.
Calling the move as illegal, the petitioner stated that terrorism cases could not be investigated by FIA, especially after the case had been put up before the trial court after completion of investigation.
Chaudhry Aslam who claims to be the protocol officer of Benazir Bhutto on the day of her assassination in Rawalpindi had stated in his petition that he wanted to get second FIR registered in the case against Interior Minister Rehman A. Malik and others.