Corps Commander’s House: Yasmin Rashid, 23 other PTI workers discharged

LAHORE: An Anti Terrorism Court on Saturday discharged PTI-Punjab president Dr Yasmin Rashid and 23 other suspects arrested in the case of Corps Commander House attack during the May 9 violence as they had not found guilty in the identification parade.

The suspects include Salamat Khan, Naeem Akhtar, Masood Javed, Ibrar Hussain, Farhan, Qasim Waheed, Tayyab, Najam Shahid, Muhammad Faisal, Abdullah Waseem, Amir Gulzar, Inamullah, Kashif and Junaid.

Sarwar Road police produced Dr Rashid and others before the court. The court also allowed five day physical remand of the 13 women including PTI former MNA Alia Hamza, Khadija Shah, Sanam Javed, Tayyaba Raja, Maryam Mazari, Sabuhi Inam, Huma Saeed, Ayesha Masood, Maha Masood and Khadija Nadeem for their photogrammetry test and directed the police to produce them again on June 08.

The court, however, ordered that the women suspects would remain in the police custody from sunrise to sunset and for rest would remain in judicial custody.

The court also allowed the Sarwar Road police physical remand of 89 male and 13 women suspects following their positive identification parade in the Corpus Commander House attack case. Earlier, the Investigating Officer [IO] told the court that as many as 126 suspects had undergone the process of the identification parade in the Corpus Commander House attack case. He said 23 suspects had not been found guilty in the identification parade, therefore, they could be discharged in the case.

The court allowed the request of police and discharged 23 suspects in the case.

The IO also requested the court to grant 14-day physical remand of Dr Yasmin to conduct her photogrammetry test, voice match and for the recovery of her mobile phones.

The counsel of Dr Yasmin Rashid, opposed the remand and argued that the police had no evidence against his client. He said Dr Yasmin was an old lady with so many health issues and her custody to police may put her life in danger.

The court observed that the record of the case revealed that neither Dr Yashim Rashid was nominated in the FIR nor involved through supplementary statements.

The court noted that the woman leader was summoned in the case on the disclosure of a co-suspect, which had no evidentiary value in the eye of law.

The court turned down the request of the IO and observed that no incriminating material was available on the record to connect her with the commission of offence.

The court ordered the police to release Dr Yasmin Rashid forthwith if not required in any other case.

The IO also told the court about the suspects who had been recognized by the prosecution witnesses during their identity parade conducted in the jail under the supervision of the area judicial magistrate.

He said the custody of the suspects was required to conduct their photogrammetry test, voice match and for recovery of the electronic devices including the cellular phones. He sought a 20-day physical remand of the suspects.

The court, however, granted the police physical remand of the male suspects for seven days with a direction to produce them again on June 10.

Initially, the court denied the request for the physical remand of the 13 women including PTI former MNA Alia Hamza, Khadija Shah, Sanam Javed, Tayyaba Raja, Maryam Mazari, Sabuhi Inam, Huma Saeed, Ayesha Masood, Maha Masood and Khadija Nadeem.

The court later directed the police to conduct the photogrammetry test of the women suspects inside the jail. The Special Prosecutor however told the court that the proceedings of the photogrammetry test could not be held in the jail and sought their physical remand

The court accepted the request and allowed a five-day physical remand of the women accordingly.

Ms Hamza after appearing the court complained about the alleged mistreatment with the women workers in the jail. She said the jail women officials frisked them at night.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023