Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Former SSP Malir Rao Anwar’s name has been placed on the Exit Control List (ECL) by the Ministry of Interior after the directives of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The suspended official holds an Iqama of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to reports.

Sources in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said that the law enforcement agency discovered ‘Iqama’ or ‘residence’ of UAE from him, which had been issued on the name of Anwar Ahmed Khan.

The Iqama has the issuance date of October 9, 2017, which is valid till October 8, 2018.

Reports say that the suspended SSP may also find himself in hot water on account of having the ‘Iqama’, which he was not entitled to obtain as a government employee.

Meanwhile, the country’s top court has summoned Sindh Inspector General of Police AD Khawaja, the Sindh Advocate General and Rao Anwar.

According to the cause list, a case was fixed before the three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on January 24, however, the bench on Tuesday took up the matter due to unknown reasons.

The bench had asked Deputy Attorney General Sajid Ilyas Bhatti to place name Anwar’s name on the ECL as he may try to abscond. The court will resume the hearing at SC’s Karachi Registry on January 27.

The SC on Tuesday summoned former SSP Malir Rao Anwar to appear before the court in “personal capacity”. On the orders of the Supreme Court (SC), the federal government on Tuesday placed Anwar’s name on the ECL.

The order came hours after the FIA officials reportedly stopped the ex-SSP at Benazir International Airport, Rawalpindi, from boarding an international flight early Tuesday morning.

FIA officials confirmed that Anwar was stopped from traveling because the no-objection certificate (NOC) he possessed was ‘suspicious’.

Authorities at the airport barred him from traveling to Dubai on flight EK-615, stating he could not travel under the current circumstances.

Anwar is currently facing a departmental inquiry over the alleged extrajudicial killing of a 27-year-old Naseemullah alias Naqeebullah Mehsud, had gone into hiding along with his entire team.

Meanwhile, after the inquiry committee probing the killing of Naseemullah Mehsud in an alleged fake police encounter declared his death was an extrajudicial killing, the family has registered a case against the former District Malir police chief SSP Rao Anwar and his entire police party for killing an innocent young man hailing from South Waziristan in Karachi.

An FIR No. 40/18 was registered at the Sacchal police station. The police have placed multiple sections in the FIR which included 302 (murder), 365 (kidnapping), 344/34 (fake encounter), 109 (on behest of) and 7 of the anti-terrorism act. The case was registered on behalf of Naseemullah’s father – Muhammad Khan.

“My son was kidnapped from a restaurant on Abul Hassan Ipshani Road on January 3 by at least eight or nine plainclothes members of SSP Rao Anwar’s team. Two more people Hazrat Ali and Muhammad Qasim were also abducted along with him but they were later released on Super Highway on January 6 while my son was remained in SSP Anwar’s custody. They also switched the cellphone of Naqeebullah off. My relatives were unable to find him despite searching here and there. Finally, we found his picture among the four suspected terrorists on the news channels and newspapers that Rao Anwar and his team members killed my son in a fake encounter. The inquiry committee also found SSP Anwar his police party guilty. There are several witnesses of this incident which also created a terror,” the complainant stated in his recorded statement in the FIR.

On January 13, Naseemullah and three other suspected terrorists were claimed to be killed by SSP Anwar during an alleged encounter in the Shah Latif Town of Karachi as what the SSP Anwar had claimed that the terrorists killed were affiliated with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and Islamic State, however, it took a U-turn after the family of the victim Naseemullah identified him and claimed that their loved one was killed in an extrajudicial killing manner.

IGP Sindh had constituted a three member committee headed by Additional Inspector General of the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) Dr Sanaullah Abbasi was constituted by IGP Sindh Allah Dino Khowaja to probe the killing of Naseemullah in an alleged fake police encounter. Since then, SSP Anwar and his police party were facing departmental inquiry, however, SSP Anwar and his team members failed to appear before an inquiry committee, IGP Sindh and SP Investigations despite they were called multiple times.

Published in Daily Times, January 24^th 2018.