Rangers official testifies against ‘MQM hitman’

An anti-terrorism court on Thursday recorded the statement of a Rangers official against suspected Muttahida Qaumi Movement target killer Umair Siddiqui alias Jailer in two cases pertaining to the murders of a paramilitary soldier and two civilians.

The ATC-7 judge heard Rangers inspector Shah’s testimony against the accused and adjourned the hearing till August 29 for further proceedings.

Siddiqui was arrested in a March 11, 2015, raid on the now-sealed MQM headquarters, Nine Zero, in Azizabad along with several others workers of the party.

The Rangers claimed that the suspect commanded a team of hitmen and killed people on the instructions of the party.

At this court, he faces trial in two cases of killing Rangers Lance Naik Shaukat and wounding another in an attack near the Suparco Headquarters in December 2010 and killing Niaz Gul and Iqbal Hussain in firing at a tea hotel in Gulshan-e-Maymar in April 2013.

The prosecution has pressed sections 302 (premeditated murder), 324 (attempting to murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act on him for the alleged offences.

Uzair Baloch cases

The court adjourned the hearing of cases against the defunct Peoples Aman Committee chief, Uzair Baloch, for his custody was with the military.

One of the Lyari war kingpins, Baloch, faces 13 cases in this court which were registered against him at different police stations in the South district between 2009 and 2016.

According to the prosecution, Baloch was arrested in an intelligence-based operation in Chakiwara in January 2016 and a large amount of arms, ammunition and explosives were found on him. Unverified reports, however, suggested that he was arrested by the Interpol in the United Arab Emirates in December 2014 and later extradited to the country.

ATC issues NBWs

An anti-terrorism court on Thursday issued non-bailable warrants of arrest against a witness in a double murder case over his repeated absence from hearing.

The ATC-16 judge ordered police to arrest Nazar Jan and present him in court on August 27 as he was not responding to the summons issued several times in the past. Jan is an eyewitness to a firing incident at a tea hotel in North Nazimabad in which two people

Mutiullah and Muhammad Abbas were killed. He himself had got injured in the incident.

According to the prosecution, Kazim Abbas Rizvi, Muhammad Noman alias Nomi, Salman and Rehan of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement had fired shots.

Rizvi and Noman are in custody facing trial while the two others have been absconding. The court has already declared the absconders proclaimed offenders and have issued permanent warrants of arrest against them.