Police officials reprimanded for failure to arrest absconders in Naqebullah case

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Karachi on Wednesday reprimanded police officials for their failure to produce absconders before the court in the Naqeebullah Mehsud murder case, reported Geo News. 

During today’s hearing, the court questioned the law enforcement authorities if it had the means to ensure that it could arrest the absconders in the case.

The court had declared SHO Shoaib shooter, Amanullah Marwat as absconders in the case. While, the main suspect in the case former SSP Malir Rao Anwar is out on bail.

The court also ordered the DIG East to personally appear before the court on February 20 and explain the police’s failure to arrest the absconders.

Since the beginning of the trial in March last year, the court has so far heard six witnesses. The father of the slain youth, Muhammad Khan, who had lodged the complainant, passed away recently.

Before his death, he had expressed his distrust in the judicial system and the authorities, as he had allegedly been receiving death threats for pursuing the case.

Twenty-three policemen, including former Malir SSP Anwar, have been charged with the murder of Naseemullah Mehsud, alias Naqeebullah Mehsud, who along with three others — Sabir, Nazar Jan and Ishaq — was killed in a fake encounter on the outskirts of the city on January 12, 2018.

Anwar had claimed that the 27-year-old was a terrorist and was killed with his accomplices during a shootout with law enforcers in the jurisdiction of the Shah Latif Town police station.

Contrary to Anwar’s repeated claim, the investigation did not find any evidence of Mehsud’s involvement in any terrorist activity, but observed that his social media profile portrayed him as a liberal and fun-loving young man with a penchant for modelling.