News Analysis |
The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ordered the constitution of a large bench for the formation of a new joint investigation team to investigate the tragic Model Town incident of 2014. A two-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar heard the petition at the Supreme Court’s Lahore Registry.
Bisma Amjad, an affectee of model town incident had filed an application seeking the formation of a new JIT to probe into the killing of workers of the PAT. Dr. Tahir ul Qadri, the chief of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) was present in the court today and said,”
Zero progress has been made in our case since former Punjab IG Mushtaq Sukhera was indicted.” Mr. Qadri urged that a new JIT be formed to re-investigate the case. On Saturday, the SC had issued notices to former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Opposition Leader in National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif and 137 others nominated in a case lodged by PAT regarding the 2014 Model Town incident.
The accused police officers are former IGP Mushtaq Ahmed Sukhera, former DIG Operations Lahore Rana Abdul Jabbar and then SP Security Salman Ali Khan.
Advocate Azam Tarar, the lawyer of former Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, has sought more time from the court today for the preparation of his arguments. The court then ordered the formation of new and larger bench including CJP Nisar, Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and three other SC justices. The hearing of the case will begin from December 5. Further, the chief justice said the bench will include representatives from all provinces.
Read more: PM Khan vows to get Model Town victims Justice
It is worth mentioning here that a deadly clash took place on 17 June 2014 where several members of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) got killed by the indiscriminate use of force by the Punjab police. The Model Town tragedy made headlines across the world and the PML-N government was criticized and exposed for following a vested political agenda.
Later on, a commission was made under the supervision of a LHC serving judge. The commission submitted its report but the PML-N led government did not publish it. Ultimately, the Punjab government, at the behest of the LHC, had made the report of the Model Town incident public on December 5, 2017.
A two-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar heard the petition at the Supreme Court’s Lahore Registry.
Justice Najafi reports that then Punjab Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Rana Sanaullah seems to have already decided on June 16, 2014 that Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) Chairman Dr. Tahirul Qadri would not be allowed any opportunity to hold a long march from Rawalpindi to Lahore, as the latter planned to do on June 23, 2014.
The PAT leadership had rejected the report as they say it wasn’t published straight away, but government bought time by delaying the publication and termed it as ‘doctored by the government’ for its face-saving.
Read more: Model Town Tragedy: Will the SC summon Sharif brothers?
The parliamentarians and bureaucrats accused by PAT other than Shahbaz Sharif include Punjab Opposition leader Hamza Shahbaz, former Law Minister Rana Sana Ullah Khan, former railway minister Khawaja Saad Rafique, former defense minister Khawaja Asif, former information minister Pervez Rashid, former State Minister Abid Sher Ali, former interior minister Ch Nisar Ali Khan, then personal secretary to CM, Syed Tauqir Shah, former home minister Azam Suleman and then Lahore commissioner Rashid Mahmood Langrial.
The accused police officers are former IGP Mushtaq Ahmed Sukhera, former DIG Operations Lahore Rana Abdul Jabbar and then SP Security Salman Ali Khan.