ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Tuesday turned down the bail pleas of four people including two MNAs of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) allegedly involved in the Sindh House attack case.
A single bench of Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri heard the petitions of PTI MNAs Ataullah Niazi and Faheem Khan and two other PTI workers including Syed Sadaqat Ali Sherazi and Tanveer Ahmed Khan seeking bail before arrest.
The federal capital police took them into custody after the court rejected their pre-arrest petitions in Sindh House attack case.
The petitioners sought their bail before arrest in case FIR No 179/22, dated 18.03.2022, offences under section 427, 186, 188, 147, 149, 506, 452, 341 PPC, registered at Police Station Secretariat, Islamabad for attacking Sindh House.
Earlier, Additional Sessions Judge, West-Islamabad had dismissed their bail before arrest on April 13.
It was alleged in the FIR against them that the petitioners along with other members of the PTI forcibly tried to enter in the Sindh House, violated section 144 CrPC, hurled abuses, raised slogans, and broke the gate of Sindh House.
The counsel for the petitioners contended that the petitioners are not nominated in the FIR; no evidence is available against them; case has been registered with mala fide intentions and by ulterior motives; sections leveled in the FIR are not attracted, hence, the petitioners are entitled for grant of pre-arrest bail.
Conversely, the state counsel stated that the petitioner, Syed Sadaqat Ali Sherazi, is nominated in the FIR; other three petitioners were nominated in supplementary statement of Controller of Sindh House which was recorded on the same day i.e. 18.03.2022; sufficient evidence is available against them; their custody is required by police for effecting recovery and conducting investigation, hence, they are not entitled for grant of bail.
The bench stated in its order that petitioner Syed Sadaqat Ali Sherazi is nominated in the FIR, whereas, other three petitioners were nominated in the supplementary statement of Ghulam Nabi Mehr, Controller Sindh House recorded on the day of occurrence, ie, 18.03.2022.
The court said that it was alleged that the petitioners alongwith other accused launched an attack on Sindh House while armed with sticks, damaged the public property, attacked on more than nine police officials/security staff present at duty, gave them beatings with fists and kicks and also torn their official uniforms. After breaking gate of Sindh House forcibly entered, hurled abuses, issued threats to members of National Assembly present in the Sindh House and also tried to create a sense of fear and terrorism and after causing damage to the public property, fled away from the place of occurrence.
It added that police had recorded statement of Qadir Mandokhel, MNA, and other officials u/s 161 CrPC. who are eye-witnesses of the occurrence and implicated the petitioners in the commission of crime while the investigating officer present in the Court stated that custody of the petitioners is required for effecting recovery of sticks and conducting investigation.
The bench observed that the petitioners, Faheem Khan, Tanveer Ahmed Khan and Atta Ullah are the members of National Assembly of Pakistan; they are custodian of law and Constitution; such an illegal and unjustified act is not expected from the public representatives.
Justice Jahangiri said that it is well settled principle of law that while deciding the bail application, before recording of evidence in the trial Court, only tentative assessment is to be made by the Court and it is not permissible to go into details of evidence in one way or the other that might prejudice the case of either party.
The judge said that there can be no escape from the fact that the petitioners/accused are implicated in the FIR by eye-witnesses whose statements have been recorded by the police u/s 161 CrPC while the counsel for the petitioners/accused have not shown any mala fide against the complainant or police for registration of instant FIR.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022