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Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi addresses the Khyber Peace Jirga on Sunday. Photo:X
PESHAWAR:
An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) was informed on Wednesday that the police wanted to name Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi as an accused in a case related to an attack on Radio Pakistan in Peshawar on May 9, 2023, but the charge was creating hurdles.
Radio Pakistan’s lawyer Shabbir Hussain Gigyani, special public prosecutor Naumanul Haq Kakakhel and investigating officer (IO) inspector Khushhal Khan appeared before the ATC on Wednesday.
Radio Pakistan’s lawyer informed the court that the IO intended to submit an additional challan, which included the names of CM Afridi, former provincial ministers Taimur Saleem Jhagra and Kamran Bangash, PTI Peshawar president Irfan Saleem and party member Amir Chamkani.
He said the additional appointments were made based on the reports of the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) and the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), but the prosecutor was refusing to receive the challan for registration.
He filed a petition with the ATC seeking contempt of court proceedings against the district attorney and the senior prosecutor of the CTD for not submitting the challan to the court.
In his application, the applicant argued that despite the identification of the accused through forensic and NADRA reports, the prosecution was yet to file the case in court.
He said the police had already submitted the case to the district attorney, but it remained pending and was not forwarded to the court.
The petition claimed that the district attorney was delaying the case and requested the court to direct the relevant authorities to submit the challan and proceed according to law.
The ATC asked the IO to submit the supplementary challan through proper channel as it issued notices to the prosecution on the contempt plea and ordered submission of a report by March 17.
In a written order, the court noted that the IO had sought additional time to submit the challan, while Radio Pakistan’s lawyer had filed a contempt of court petition against the district attorney, senior CTD prosecutor and the investigating officer.
Later speaking to the media, Radio Pakistan’s lawyer said that provincial ministers and legislators were named in the case following forensic and identification reports.
“The police have now completed their investigation and forwarded the file to the prosecution, but the public prosecutor kept the file and did not forward it for further proceedings,” he said, urging the prosecution to carry out its duties in accordance with the law.
