Still no sign

Less than a week after Naqeebullah Mehsud was shot dead in a police raid on January 13 led by then SSP Malir Rao Anwar, an inquiry committee found that Mehsud had no links to militant actions and had been killed in a staged encounter. It has now been over 10 days since Anwar has been on the lam and a Supreme Court deadline for his arrest has passed. There have been multiple opportunities to nab Anwar. He could have been placed in custody as a flight risk when the inquiry committee had been constituted. He certainly should have been arrested after he actually tried to flee the country and was stopped by FIA officials. That he is still at large will fuel speculation that Anwar still enjoys the protection of political and non-political elements. Even while in hiding he has been in contact with the media, using WhatsApp to issue statements. The police claim they cannot trace the whereabouts of WhatsApp calls since Anwar has removed his SIM from his mobile phone, although former FIA officials say that shouldn’t be difficult to do since he has to use an internet connection to place WhatsApp calls. The Supreme Court has given the Sindh police 10 more days to find Anwar, and directed intelligence agencies to help track him down.

Anwar has long been known as an ‘encounter specialist’ but it is unlikely he is the only one. The Sindh police have long been accused of extra-judicial killings. As a prominent police officer dating back to the 1990s, Anwar would be familiar with anyone else involved in ‘encounters’. He has managed to stay in the police force for so long despite his reputation and survived multiple suspensions in the past because of the patronage he has enjoyed. There are bona-fide fears that there could be further attempts to help him flee the country – if that has not already been done. In the meanwhile, a protest in front of the National Press Club in Islamabad on Thursday called for an end to the extra-judicial killings of Pakhtuns – a problem that has intensified as we fight our war against militancy. Any rumours of there being a Diyat deal between Naqeeb’s family and Anwar have also been quickly and strongly rejected by the deceased’s family. Rao Anwar and those like him need to answer not just for the murder of Naqeebullah but anyone else who may have been killed on their orders. That is essential to restore faith in the police and the government.