Daily Times

KARACHI: An anti-terrorism court on Thursday heard a case pertaining to the recovery of explosives and illicit weapons from the office of Omni Group.

Khawaja Salman Younus, Mian Shaukat and the other accused appeared before the ATC. As Rangers counsel did not turned up for the haring, therefore the court adjourned hearing till September 26.

In next hearing, the court will pronounce verdict on ‘A’ class report of the Investigation Officer of the case, which was opposed by Rangers counsel.

Rangers had recovered explosives and illicit weapons from the office of Omni Group last year.

The paramilitary force had nominated the owner and an official of the group as suspects in the FIR lodged at the Saddar police station under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.

Investigating officer of the case Pir Shabbir Haider had submitted an ‘A-class’ report before an antiterrorism court and contended that according to the bomb disposal expert’s report the ball bombs were dummies.

The forensic science laboratory report said that the seized weapons had not been used in any crime, the investigation report said. It had stated that the relevant sections of the Explosive Substances Act and ATA were not applicable in the case as no explosive material was found.

However, the Rangers law officer had opposed the police report and argued that no laboratory was available in Sindh to detect the explosive material and said that a letter had been written to the DIG South to send the recovered explosives and weapons to Islamabad for analysis.

A case was registered on a complaint of a Rangers official under Sections 23(1)(a) of the Sindh Arms Act, 2013 and Section 4/5 of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908 read with Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorist act .

Published in Daily Times, August 18^th 2017.