Daily Times

KARACHI: The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Sindh has initiated a probe against some lawyers believed to be facilitating hardcore terrorists by preparing and submitting counterfeit documents on their behalf in court proceedings, Daily Timeslearnt on Tuesday. A senior police official says that the law enforcement agencies have gathered evidence linking some lawyers to banned parties and militant wings of political parties. SSP Omer Shahid, currently serving as the SSP in the West police, has prepared a report containing information and evidence regarding such lawyers and their activities. Speaking to Daily Times on Tuesday, he said that the matter surfaced during the ongoing operation against banned organizations. A report has been sent to Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Sindh for further investigations. “Take the example of the suspect [Kashif alias Kallu] apprehended by the West police for killing seven innocent people. He had been declared dead in a certificate submitted in the Anti Terrorism Court by his lawyer,” Shahid says. Before being deputed as the SSP West, Shahid had served in the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Sindh as the SSP Intelligence for almost three years. Regarding District West, Shahid says Orangi Town, Mangopir, SITE area, Baldia Town and Pirabad were strongholds of the TTP, LeJ, and militant wings of political parties for nearly a decade from 2003 to 2013, till the beginning of Karachi Operation in 2013. “There still are elements maintaining their sleeper cells. They may be silent at the moment but they have the potential to emerge again,” says Shahid, adding that a team has been assigned the task of gathering information on the location of these elements. “Once LEAs cleared these areas and militant strongholds, they went on the run. We cannot wait for them to raise their heads again, instead we have to keep an eye on them as cases against many suspects are still under trial in the courts,” the officer further says.

Published in Daily Times, February 21^st 2018.