Daily Times

In an exclusive interview with a private TV channel on Sunday night, the family of deceased Khalil, who was killed along with his wife and daughter by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel in a shady encounter in Sahiwal, reiterated its dissatisfaction with the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) and its ongoing probe. They also threatened to take to the streets if a judicial commission is not formed to probe the shootout.

A newspaper report states: “The JIT tasked with probing the incident that killed three of a family on January 19 returned to Lahore on Sunday after gathering more evidences into the case. According to sources, the JIT apprised Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was in Lahore on Sunday, of its finding in the case during a meeting. It has been learnt that more arrests will be made in the light of the JIT findings.” Khalil’s family also appealed to Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar to ensure provision of justice keeping in view his promise. The CM has refused to form the judicial commission on Sunday after his meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan. It clearly means that he has conveyed the Prime Minister’s message.

Refusing to form a judicial commission on the fake Sahiwal encounter is a shocking move. The entire nation was expecting a vigorous and justifiable stance from the government after seeing real footage of the fake encounter. The government should have taken steps leading the heinous crime to its logical conclusion.

If Khalil’s family goes to protest and blocks roads in Lahore or elsewhere, believe me the public sentiments are with them

Unfortunately, it seems that both the government and its JIT have taken U-turn on the case. The changing behaviour on the repeatedly changed statements of the CTD on the incident is to make us believe that the case is more than merely an ‘encounter’. It is not only about the high handedness of the Punjab police. Many believe that much more would be revealed if the case is probed transparently.

It is barely believable that the JIT would be asking the traumatised minors for the identification of the culprits who were wearing masks at the time of the incident. One child’s statement that his father begged for his life against money was also rejected by the investigators.

The two-week long JIT proceedings have been fruitful only for the CTD team that could avail much time to create evidence against one of the victims; Zeeshan Javed who is alleged to be an ISIS facilitator. The close observers of the case believe that the CTD will come up with some evidence against him soon. The forthcoming evidence would be taken as justification the firing of live rounds directly at the vehicle. The previous CTD statements have concluded with that they may have the right to kill anyone on the presumption that he would be engaged in any heinous crime. Ironically strange logic.

The CTD staged another ‘encounter’ on January 20 in Gujranwala and killed two persons on the pretext of them being ‘terrorists’ and linked them to the accomplices of Zeeshan Javed. According to the anti-terror police department, the two alleged terrorists were residing in Zeeshan’s house in Lahore and fled when they heard the news of Zeeshan’s death. In another statement then, the police termed the killed ones as unidentified. The CTD also claimed that both ‘terrorists’, who were in an automobiles, had killed themselves in a suicide blast.

Once again, three different statements by the CTD made the Gujranwala ‘encounter’ suspicious and dubious. This encounter had a low profile since no real-time video surfaced. However, neighbours and eyewitnesses reported to the media that it was not actually an ‘encounter’. Some CTD officials killed the two individuals after opening firing on them, and destroyed the vehicle in a blast themselves.

Both these ‘encounters’ have raised many questions even on the previous performance of the CTD as well. Only thorough and in-depth investigations by an independent and high-profiled judicial commission of reliable and trustworthy members would be acceptable to the public. We need real and genuine combatting efforts to uproot the menace of terrorism and extremism. Surely these fake ‘encounters’ fail to justify the public funds spent on the CTD and other security agencies. We don’t need a mere eyewash.

The government should seriously take note of the heirs demand to form the judicial commission to probe the case. As threatened, if Khalil’s family goes to protest and block the roads in Lahore or elsewhere, believe me the public sentiments are with them. The government would be unable to stop the masses coming out on the streets in solidarity with the deceased’s family. The Senate Standing Committee on Interior has already rejected the JIT findings on its Tuesday meeting and has demanded of the judicial commission.

The committee made the decision after recording the testimony of the mother of Zeeshan – one of the four people who were shot in the ‘encounter’ – who said she had no confidence in the JIT’s investigation. Her observations seem to be true if the JIT findings are analysed rationally. Her apprehensions are genuine that the police that are investigating [the incident] are the ones who committed the killings. How could they go against their colleagues?

Not only has Senator Rehman Malik and other members of the Senate’s Standing Committee have categorically rejected the JIT report, they have raised serious concerns over the proceedings too. PML-N Senator Javed Abbasi has asked a rational question in the Senate committee, that the committee has rejected the JIT, Senate rejected the JIT, then what capacity is this JIT working in?

The committee members have collectively demanded the government to form a judicial commission. The panel also directed the interior secretary to investigate the changing statements of provincial ministers.

In the prevailing political scenario against the JIT and the ‘encounter’, there would be no reason for the opposition parties and the parliamentarians but to go along with the heirs of the Khalil family. It would be wise for the government to go for a judicial commission to dispense justice in the Sahiwal ‘encounter’ and to avoid a sheer conflict. Humble suggestion: the scope of the prospect judicial commission may be extended to other ‘encounters’ too just to wipe of the stains of CTD high handedness.

The writer is an Islamabad-based policy advocacy, strategic communication and outreach expert

Published in Daily Times, February 5^th 2019.