Teenager released after police admit fake drugs case

LAHORE : Additional District and Sessions Judge Naeem Sheikh Saturday acquitted a teenage boy of drug trafficking charges after the police itself admitted that he was nominated in a fake case.

The teenager, Muhammad Ali, spent nine months in jail over fake charges of trafficking 1300 gram hashish. Nau-Lakkha police had registered a case of trafficking 1300 gram hashish against the boy.

As per the FIR of the case, Sub Inspector Rasheed was complainant of the case and three other police officials, including Kazim and Farooq, were prosecution witnesses. However, the police officials didn’t appear before the court despite the passage of nine months. The court had issued many notices to them but they didn’t bother to comply with the orders.

Later, Rana Shahbaz, counsel of Muhammad Ali, got a direction from the Lahore High Court which directed the court concerned to conclude the trial in one month.

After which the sessions court directed police high ups to present the prosecution witnesses and complainant of the case before the court. The judge wrote to the SP concerned that the prosecution had failed to establish the case against the teenager and were delaying the case by not producing the complainant and prosecution witnesses before the court.

Finally, Sub Inspector Rasheed appeared before the court today.

The SI while recording his statement before the court said that he was not the complainant of the case as he was off duty when the case was registered. “I had closed my daily diary at 4 pm and left my office,” Rasheed added.

He further said that as per the FIR the boy had been arrested at 10:45 pm and case was registered at 11pm and he himself registered the case but the fact was not correct.

The judge after recording the statement of the SI ordered the release the boy, declaring him innocent. The judge also wrote in its order that the police had registered a fake case against the boy. Teenager Muhammad Ali told the media that he was nominated in a false case due to which he had to spend nine months in jail. He said his mother had died after four days of his arrest. He alleged that the police had taken bribe from actual drug traffickers and nominated him instead in the false case.

The prosecution witnesses and complainant of the case didn’t appear before the court despite repeated show-cause notices, several bailable and non-bailaable arrest warrants for them due to which the innocent boy suffered for nine months in jail on judicial remand.