Ex-Karachi mayor Wasim Akhtar, two MQM men acquitted in May 12 violence case – Pakistan

Karachi: An anti-terrorist court (ATC) acquitted on Monday the leader of the Muttahida Qaumi-Pakistan movement (MQM-P) and former mayor of Karachi Wasim Akhtar and two others in one of the seven cases related to the violence of May 12, 2007 .

On May 12, 2007, around 50 people were killed and more than 100 wounds in attacks against demonstrations organized by members of political parties and legal fraternity who had tried to receive the deposed president of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry at the airport at the airport of Karachi before the first justices. A lawyer meeting. Judge Chaudhry was forced to fly back to Islamabad after being restricted to the airport for nine hours.

The judge of the ATC-VII, who made the trial within the judicial complex at the facilities of the central prison of Karachi, acquitted Mr. Akhtar, Umair Siddiqui and Ejaz Shah Qadri for lack of evidence against them.

The Court ruled that the Prosecutor’s Office did not prove charges against the accused persons beyond a reasonable doubt.

ATC exonerates them from all charges due to lack of evidence; Six identical cases also pending since 2007

The founder of MQM, Altaf Hussain, and several others have already been declared fleeting in the case. The court ruled that the case file remained inactive until its arrest.

The three defendants appeared in the court on bail and the court canceled their bonds after pronouncing the verdict.

According to the case of prosecution, being the advisor of origin, Mr. Akhtar, on May 10, 2007, presided over a meeting at the headquarters of the nine zero of the party, attended by workers of the party and sector in charge. The meeting was aimed at destabilizing the city and preventing the old CJP from reaching Karachi and also ensured that lawyers do not arrive at the airport to welcome you, he added.

Mr. Akhtar, who was formally arrested in 2016 in the present case, was accused of the crimes of incorporation, hiding the design to commit a crime and facilitating the violence of May 12 after he allegedly confessed before the police have chaired the alleged meeting.

During the trial, defense lawyer Mushtaq Ahmed argued that the Prosecutor’s Office had not presented any substantial evidence or witnesses to support the accusation that Akhtar, who was the advisor of the principal minister in matters of origin in 2007, had held a meeting at that time to avoid ex CJP to get to Karachi.

He argued that there was no evidence available in the registry to suggest that his client was involved in the embedding or facilitation of the May 12 disturbances.

The lawyer added that Coacusado, Umair and Ejaz were involved in the case based on Akhtar’s alleged confession.

There were a total of seven identical cases at the airport and other police station under sections 146 (disturbances), 147 (punishment for disturbances), 148 (disturbances, armed with mortal weapon), 149 (each member of the illegal assembly guilty of crime committed in the prosecution of a common object), 109 (punishment for the embedding if the abetive law is committed accordingly and when no express provision is made for punishment) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Criminal Code, Pakistan, Read with section 7 of the anti -CE of terrorism of 1997.

Posted in Dawn, January 28, 2025



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