Khadim Rizvi, others remanded in police custody

LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court on Wednesday granted 20-day physical remand of Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) Chief Khadim Hussain Rizvi and three others to the police, earlier booked under sedition and terrorism charges by Civil Lines police.

The other three accused include TLP patron Pir Afzal Qadri, Pir Ijaz Ashrafi and Hafiz Farooq-ul-Hassan. Civil Lines police produced the accused before the court amid tight security as heavy contingents of police had cordoned off the ATC premises.

Teams of prosecutors, including Abdul Rauf Wattoo, Waqar Bhatti and Hafiz Asghar, sought 60 days physical remand of the accused from the court to carry out investigations. The court was informed that due to security reasons the accused could not be produced before the court after short intervals of physical remand. They told the court that interrogators need to conduct photogrammetric test of the accused. After which originality of voice and graphics of the accused will be accessed, they argued.

The court after hearing the arguments of the ATC prosecutors remanded Khadim Hussain Rizvi and others in police custody for 20 days. The government had taken the accused in protective custody on November 23 from Lahore. Later, a letter was written to Home Department by the Civil Lines police stating that the accused are nominated in a case and their custody is required to carry out investigations.

The Home Department while responding to the letter ended the detention of the accused and handed them over to Civil Lines police who produced them before the court for their physical remand. The case was registered against the accused on October 30.