JIT gets three days to grill ‘SRA man’ in Saddar blast case

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) has remanded a suspect, said to be associated with the outlawed Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army (SRA), in the Counter-Terrorism Department’s (CTD) custody for interrogation about a bomb blast in Karachi’s Saddar area last month.

On May 12, an improvised explosive device (IED) blast had rattled the busy Saddar area, leaving a passer-by dead and wounding several others. A number of vehicles, including one belonging to the Pakistan Coast Guards, were also damaged in the explosion.

Subsequently, the SRA had claimed responsibility for the attack, saying the Coast Guards’ vehicle was the target. The investigating officer, Syed Muhammad Sarfraz, presented the suspect, identified as Muhammad Sabir Kharal, before the administrative judge of the anti-terrorism courts with a request for the grant of his physical remand for 14 days.

The IO said Kharal, who was detained over alleged possession of explosive material on May 27, is required to be interrogated about his alleged involvement in the blast as a joint investigation team (JIT) would be constituted for the purpose.

Turning down the plea for 14-day police remand, the court handed over the custody of the suspect to the CTD until June 10 instead and directed the investigation officer to present him on the expiry of his remand along with a progress report. The officer was told to submit the charge sheet within the stipulated time.

According to the CTD, three suspects -- Asghar Shah alias Sajjad Shah, Ghulam Mehdi alias Aqib Chandio, and Noor Muhammad Chandio -- are at large in the case. They all are affiliated with the banned separatist organisation. Two men, identified as Allah Dino and Nawab Ali, who were purportedly involved in the terror attack, were killed in an encounter with the police last month.

Ali Wazir’s bail plea

Another anti-terrorism court issued notices on an application of Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) leader and MNA Ali Wazir seeking bail in a fourth case related to alleged sedition.

Wazir, who has been behind bars since December 31, 2020, was formally arrested in the present case last week. He has already been granted bail in two cases, while the court is to announce its verdict on his bail plea in the third case on June 23.

According to the investigating officer, the lawmaker along with MNA Mohsin Dawar and others, was booked for allegedly delivering speeches against the state institutes at a meeting held in a flat within the jurisdiction of the Boat Basin police station in 2018.

The challan filed by the IO showed Dawar and others as absconders in the case. The court set June 13 as the next date of hearing when the prosecution and defence sides will advance their arguments on the bail plea.