Court indicts four alleged LeJ militants

KARACHI: An anti-terrorism court on Saturday framed charges against four suspected militants in the murder of a Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) lawmaker and his son.

Suspected Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militants have been charged with allegedly killing MQM MPA Sajid Qureshi and his son, Waqas Qureshi, in June 2013 outside a mosque in North Nazimabad. The suspected militants have been identified as Talha alias Vicki, Kazim Ali Shah, Ubaidur Rehman and Muhammad Shahab alias Chotu.

Conducting the trial inside the prison, the ATC-VI judge read out the charges against the accused persons, to which they pleaded not guilty and decided to contest. The court summoned the prosecution witnesses for evidence on April 19.

The police had arrested the accused in July 2013 from Orangi Town after a shootout. According to the law enforcers, unlicensed weapons and explosive material were recovered from their possession.

The law enforcers maintained that the accused were affiliated with the banned sectarian militants outfit and allegedly killed the MPA at the behest of their chief Attaur Rehman alias Naeem Bukhari and others.

The prosecution said two eyewitnesses had also identified the accused during an identification parade before a judicial magistrate after they were arrested.

The case was registered under sections 302 (premeditated murder), 109 (abetment) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, read with Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 at the North Nazimabad police station.

Source: The Express Tribune