SIC stages sit-in over Tariq Mehboob’s custodial death

Karachi
Members of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) on Sunday staged a sit-in, at the Sea Breeze Plaza on MA Jinnah road, with the body of its senior leader Tariq Mehboob who died in the custody of law enforcement agencies a day earlier.
The protestors, en route to the Chief Minister House were stopped mid way by police personnel, whereas the road was blocked.
According to SIC press secretary, Shah Alam, the sit-in was ended after the provincial government agreed to accept the demands of the council.
“Our main demand was the formation of a judicial commission, registration of FIR as well as the permission to get the post-mortem examination done wherever the party desired,” Alam said.
A four member team, comprising Saleem Attari and Athar Mehboob of the SIC and Advisor to CM and Assistant to CM Waqar Mehdi and Rashid Rabbani respectively, was formed to further probe the matter, Alam informed.
“Official documentation regarding the demands had been sent to the CM House and would be mutually decided upon by the designated representatives,” he claimed.
Anjuman Naujawanan-e-Islam chief and member SIC, 54-year-old Mehboob was arrested a few days ago for his alleged involvement in criminal activities. He was handed over to the Rangers on a 90-day physical remand on March 16 but apparently died of a cardiac arrest in his jail cell two days later.
His family as well as the party members, however, claimed that Mehboob succumbed to the brutal third degree torture inflicted on him by the law enforcement agencies’ personnel.
According to the medico-legal section of the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) the initial findings indicated he died of a cardiac arrest only and not of torture, however, an official report was yet to come. He would be laid to rest on Tuesday.