ATC seeks medical report of PTM leader Ali Wazir

An anti-terrorism court has sought from the jail authorities a medical examination report of Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement leader and MNA Ali Wazir after he complained of suffering from backache and kidney problems.

The ATC-XII judge ordered the Central Jail superintendent to furnish a comprehensive report on the interned lawmaker’s health on the next hearing, besides informing the court about the treatment Wazir had been given in the prison.

Meanwhile, the court gave more time to the investigation officer of the case to procure a certified translation of the suspect’s speech in which he allegedly criticised and incited the public against the state.

At the outset of the hearing, the investigation officer requested the court to grant him more time to bring the translation from the Federal Investigation Agency, saying that the correspondence was time- consuming and ran at a slow bureaucratic process.

During the previous hearing, the court had ordered the IO to get the Urdu translation of Wazir’s speech in Pashto from the FIA after the previous two translations became controversial.

Initially, the police had submitted an own translation of the speech in the ATC; however, the defence counsel objected to it and the court directed the IO to get it done from the Pashtu Academy, University of Peshawar.

Later, the defence counsel also opposed it, saying that the translation was the same as the earlier one and the only difference in them was that the latter carried a stamp of the academy.

According to the prosecution, the lawmaker addressed a public gathering of around 2,000 participants at Sohrab Goth on December 6, 2020 in which they incited public against the state and used derogatory language against security forces.

Police had arrested Wazir in Peshawar in connection with the case on a request of the Sindh police and flown him to Karachi to face trial. Currently, only he is in custody while 10 of his suspected accomplices have obtained bail from the court.

The charge sheet reads that under the purview of the investigation, witnesses statements and video footage of the rally, the case was lodged under sections 120-B (punishment of criminal conspiracy), 121 (waging or attempting to wage war or abetting waging of war against Pakistan), 121-A (conspiracy to commit offences punishable under Section 121), 124-A (sedition), 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups, etc), 505 (statements conducing to public mischief), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code read with section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act.