Man accused of possessing grenade sentenced to 14-year imprisonment

An anti-terrorism court has handed down a collective sentence of 28-year rigorous imprisonment to a man in a case pertaining to possession of explosive material.

Pervez Islam was found guilty of carrying a hand grenade within the jurisdiction of the Site-A police station in September last year. The ATC-XIII judge, who conducted the trial in the judicial complex inside the central prison, announced his order after recording evidence and final arguments from both the defence and prosecution sides.

He sentenced the accused to 14 years of rigorous imprisonment under the Section 4(b) of the Explosive Substances Act 1908. The judge awarded another 14-year imprisonment to him under the Section 7(f) of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997.

The convict was told to pay a collective fine of Rs100,000 or undergo an additional one-year imprisonment over default. “The whole property of the accused Pervez Islam is forfeited to the government,” ruled the judge.

The accused was remanded back to the prison to serve out the sentences that shall run concurrently. According to the prosecution, a hand grenade was recovered from the possession of the accused on September 24, 2023.

Defence lawyer AJK Marwat contended that his client was innocent and had been implicated in a fabricated case by the police over personal enmity. He added that the accused was picked up by the Jackson police on the evening of September 23 and later handed over to the Site-A police that booked him in this case, foisting explosive material on him. He pleaded with the judge to acquit his client.