Naqibullah murder case: Sherpao concerned at disappearance of witness

PESHAWAR: Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) chairman Aftab Sherpao on Sunday expressed concern over the disappearance of a key eyewitness in the Naqibullah Mahsud murder case and asked the chief justice Supreme Court to take suo moto notice of the incident.

In a statement, he said the Supreme Court should cancel the bail of retired police officer Rao Anwar as he could pressurise other eyewitnesses to make them retract their statements against him regarding his alleged involvement in the extrajudicial killing. "It seems that some forces are at work to weaken this case to deny justice to the bereaved family," he feared.

Naqibullah Mahsud, 27, hailing from South Waziristan was allegedly killed in a fake police encounter in Karachi last year. Rao Anwar, the then Senior Superintendent of Police, had led the encounter. Aftab Sherpao said that the Naqibullah murder was a test case for the police as the incident had saddened all Pakhtuns.

He said that it would be very shocking and disappointing if justice was not provided to his family by punishing the accused. He said that such incidents would deepen the sense of despondency among the Pakhtuns and alienate them from the state.

Criticising the police for its highhandedness, he said had the perpetrators of the Naqibullah murder case been punished, the death of Pakhtun political worker Arman Loni and the Sahiwal incident could have been averted.