Police given two more weeks to arrest May 12 absconding suspects

An anti-terrorism court on Tuesday granted two more weeks to police for arresting dozens of political activists wanted in a case pertaining to May 12 violence in Karachi.

Police had booked Abdul Bari Kakar, Habibullah, Mushtaq and Wakeel Khan along with around 500 unidentified activists associated with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), the Awami National Party (ANP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), for their alleged involvement in the riots on May 12, 2007.

At the outset of the hearing, the ATC judge sought compliance report regarding the execution of non-bailable warrants issued by the court, on a previous hearing, for the arrest of the absconding suspects in the case.

The court previously had granted two weeks to the investigation officer with the direction to ensure the arrest of all the absconding suspects and produce them before the court on Tuesday.

However, the IO informed the judge that he was still tracing the absconding suspects and sought more time to enable him to arrest and produce them before the court. The judge gave him time till February 21 to arrest the absconders and produce them before the court on the next date and adjourned the hearing.

In September 2019, the IO filed a charge sheet nominating Abdul Bari Kakar, Habibullah, Mushtaq and Wakeel Khan with around 500 activists of the PPP, the ANP and the JI for allegedly resorting to violence and terrorism on the day of the incident.

Around 50 people were killed and over 100 wounded in attacks on rallies organised by members of political parties and the legal fraternity who had attempted to receive the then deposed chief justice of Pakistan, Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, at the Karachi airport ahead of a lawyers’ gathering.

Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar, who was the then advisor on home to the chief minister, alleged target killer Umair Siddiqui, Mohammad Nasir and Nasir Zia with several activists belonging to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement have already been charged with rioting, arson attacks and terrorism in four identical cases registered at the Airport police station on May 12.