PHC orders registration of FIR against NAB DG, another official

Torture in custody

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday ordered registration of the first information report (FIR) against director general of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Investigation Officer for severely torturing one of their employees who was arrested in a case of corruption.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Musarrat Hilali allowed the writ petition in the light of the Supreme Court judgment.The apex court had ordered registration of the FIR in cognizable offence against the officials who tortured the accused in custody and the act was medically proved in the court.

The court ordered registration of the FIR against DG NAB Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Shehzad Saleem, and Investigation Officer Muhammad Umair Butt. The police was directed to register the FIR within three days.

The direction was issued in the writ petition of Saiqa Gul Khitab, daughter of the NAB employee, Sardar Gul Khitab who was arrested on corruption charges.His daughter claimed that the NAB tortured her father in custody, arguing that this was evident from his medical report.  

The suspect was arrested by the NAB on April 30.  An accountability court had remanded him into NAB’s custody for seven days.The NAB alleged that he had received bribe of Rs200,000 from a municipal officer, Mehbub Ali, in Abbottabad by impersonating as NAB KP Assistant Director (Investigation) Umair Butt.

During the hearing, the petitioner’s lawyer, Sardar Ali Raza submitted before the bench that his client’s father was severely tortured during custody. He informed the bench that on the application of the daughter of the accused, the accountability court summoned Sardar Gul Khitab who was in poor health.

He said the suspect and his daughter, Saiqa Gul Khitab, alleged before the accountability court that he was severely tortured in custody by Investigation Officer Umair Butt and the NAB prosecutor Mushtaq Khan.

The investigation officer denied the charges and said the injuries were self-inflicted.The lawyer said the accountability court then referred the suspect to Police Services Hospital for medical check-up and the report noted that he bruises on his arms, legs and buttocks.

For further confirmation, he said the court referred the suspect to Lady Reading Hospital. He added that the doctors there also reported that Sardar Gul Khitab had bruises on his arms, legs and buttocks.

He said on receipt of the medical reports the accountability court sent the accused to Central Prison Peshawar on judicial remand and passed an order that he can obtain remedy from a regular court regarding registration of FIR under Section 22-A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).

The lawyer informed the bench that the daughter of the suspect then filed an application under Section 22-A of CrPC, seeking registration of the FIR against the DG NAB and the investigation officer after the Hayatabad Police Station refused to register the case.

He said the additional district and sessions judge also dismissed the application filed under Section 22-A of the CrPC despite the fact that there were medical reports showing that the suspect had been tortured.

Advocate Sardar Ali Raza informed the bench that under Section 337-K of Pakistan Penal Code and Section 154 of the CrPC, the torture of an accused during custody was cognizable offence and the police was bound to register FIR against the violators of the law.

He also referred to a judgment of the Supreme Court that ruled that trying to seek confession forcibly was a cognizable offence.