KP Police warehouse: SC seeks record of all cases related to vehicles

PESHAWAR: The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday summoned the complete record of all case-related to vehicles currently lying in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police warehouse.

Hearing an appeal filed by Imran Khan regarding the custody (superdari) of a vehicle at the SC Peshawar Registry, a three-member bench comprising Justice Musarrat Hilali, Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Justice Shakil Ahmad directed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa advocate general to submit a report to the court by today (Thursday), having details of all the case-related vehicles in the possession of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police.

The bench also remarked that the report must include which vehicles were currently in the warehouse, to which cases they pertained and under what legal provision the police were using these vehicles.

Justice Musarrat Hilali observed how police officers used case-property vehicles for personal purposes, saying that it was essential for such vehicles to be stored in the police warehouse.Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim said that these issues would not be resolved unless an officer was dismissed from service.

As the bench began the hearing, Imran Khan’s lawyer, Anjum Durrani informed the court that a 2010 Toyota GLi, owned by his client, had been in the possession of Chamkani police since 2020. He pleaded that the vehicle was currently being used by a retired police officer.

He argued that according to the law, the vehicle should have been kept in the warehouse and not used personally by police officers.The lawyer also informed the court that the vehicle was worth millions of rupees and that his client now sought its custody as it was linked to a narcotics case being handled by Chamkani police.At this point, the court asked the additional advocate general to inform them of the current location of the vehicle. Later, the court summoned the AG Shah Faisal Utmankhel.

Justice Shakil Ahmad remarked, “Have some mercy on this country. How long will such illegal practices continue?”Justice Musarrat Hilali addressed the AG, saying, “You only go after junior staff. Why don’t you take action against senior officers? Unless senior officers are held accountable, these matters will not be resolved.”

She instructed him to inform the court about the number of vehicles currently in the police warehouse, the cases they were connected to and whether any of these vehicles were being used or were parked in the warehouse.

The court directed that all this information be submitted by today.Also, the motor vehicle examiner was summoned and instructed him to inform the court about the current status of the said vehicle as whether it was parked in the warehouse or in use and submit a report in this regard.The court then adjourned the hearing until today and instructed the AG to submit a detailed report.