DAWN / NEWS International,Karachi 11 October 1997 Saturday 08 Jamadi-us-Saani 1418 'Haqiqi operation to capture MQM offices on 12th' KARACHI: The MQM Coordination Committee has alleged that the Haqiqi terrorists will try to capture the MQM offices in districts Central, East and South on October 12 as part of the operation against the MQM. While addressing an emergency press conference at 'Nine-Zero' on Friday, Senator Aftab Shaikh said the MQM had received information from reliable sources that the Haqiqi 'terrorists' would be used for killings in city and to crush the MQM like the June 1993 operation. He said it would be done under the guise of the so-called MQM (Haqiqi) convention and weapons and vehicles would be provided to capture the MQM offices. Official agencies would support the 'terrorists' and the word "clash" between two groups would be used in the news item. The committee appealed to President Farooq Leghari, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and COAS General Jahangir Karamat to take notice of the alleged plan. Meanwhile, the Haq Parast members of the assemblies have condemned the police raids on houses of party workers. The MQM legislators Shaikh Liaquat Hussain, Arif Khan and Farrukh Naeem stated that Jamshed Quarters police conducted raids on the houses of MQM workers in Korangi and misbehaved with their family members. They appealed to the prime minister and chief minister to take action against those responsible. --------------------------------- Former LHC judge gunned down in Lahore LAHORE, Oct 10: A prominent PPP leader and former Lahore High Court judge Arif Iqbal Husain Bhatti was gunned down by an unidentified assailant in his Turner Road office here on Friday morning. Mr Bhatti was a member of the Lahore High Court, Division Bench, which had acquitted Salamat Masih and Rehmat Masih in a blasphemy case in 1995 amidst protests by activists of a religious organization. A modest, soft-spoken person, Mr Bhatti was a popular figure in both legal and political circles. According to eyewitnesses, the armed assailant, said to be a shabbily-dressed bearded person of around 45, had entered Mr Bhatti's office when he had just arrived there from the courts at about 10.40am. The man whipped out a pistol and fired several times at the former judge, who was hit in the face and the stomach. An office boy was present in the office. Mr Bhatti's younger brother, who had his chambers close-by, was immediately informed of the shooting and he rushed to Mr Bhatti's office. Mr Bhatti was alive but critically injured. It is said that because of the security arrangements on The Mall on account of the visit of Queen Elizabeth, he could not be taken to the Mayo Hospital. His brother then tried to take him to the Services Hospital, but even side lanes were jammed with traffic and Mr Bhatti died on way to the hospital. Police officials were confused about the possible motive for the murder. "Apparently, it seems to be a terrorist activity but it is too early to say anything about the motive, sectarian or otherwise, behind the murder", Punjab IGP Jehanzeb Burki told reporters soon after the incident. The Punjab PPP leadership, however, did not rule out a political motive, and alleged that the murder of a retired judge might be construed by some as a signal to the judiciary. On the complaint of Mr Bhatti's son, Mozang police registered a murder case against an unidentified accused. A source in the police department quoted Mr Bhatti's family as accusing unidentified activists of a religious party for involvement in the murder. "After the announcement of the LHC division bench judgment acquitting Salamat Masih and Rehmat Masih in a blasphemy case, Mr Arif Iqbal Bhatti had been receiving threatening and abusive calls from some activists of a religious organization," a member of his family was quoted as saying. Mr Bhatti was also reported to be involved in a property dispute with his landlord. The dispute has reportedly resolved. According to Zahid, the office boy of Justice (retd) Arif Iqbal Bhatti and an eye-witness to the murder incident, the assailant had come early in the morning posing as a client and asking about Mr Bhatti. When told that the lawyer was away at the courts, the man went away but returned after about an hour. Mr Bhatti had arrived in his chambers by then - at about 10.40am. The visitor was led inside to meet him. The assailant then whipped out a pistol and opened fire on the retired judge. He was hit by five bullets. He sustained three injuries in the face and two in the stomach. The assailant reportedly left the office quite calm and composed in front of a number of people. Area police reportedly reached the spot more than 90 minutes after occurrence. Mr Bhatti is survived by his widow, a son and two daughters. His funeral prayers are scheduled to be offered at the Nasser Bagh at 10am. The Lahore Bar Association has announced it would observe a strike on Saturday to protest against the murder of Arif Iqbal Bhatti. PM GRIEVED: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has expressed shock and grief over the tragic death of Justice (retd) Arif Iqbal Bhatti, adds APP Lauding the services of the late justice, he said that Justice Bhatti was a learned judge of the High Court and his contribution to the rule of law and supremacy of justice would long be remembered. He prayed to Almighty Allah to rest the departed soul in eternal peace and grant courage to the bereaved family to bear this irreparable loss. BENAZIR SHOCKED:PPP Chairperson Benazir Bhutto condemned the murder of Justice (retd) Arif Iqbal Bhatti. In her condolence message, Ms Bhutto expressed deep sorrow and grief over the death of Mr Bhatti. She also paid tributes to the services rendered by the deceased. The murder of Mr Bhatti was also widely condemned by the legal and political circle. Punjab PPP president Rao Sikandar Iqbal, general-secretary Prof Ijazul Hassan, Lahore president Mian Misbahur Rehman and others - Azizur Rehman Chan, Hafiz Ghulam Mohiyuddin, Malik Hafizur Rehman and Iqbal Sialvi have condemned the murder of Mr Bhatti. People's Lawyers Forum president Mian Jehangir, secretary-general Shahid Mehmood Bhatti, Lahore High Court Bar Association Vice-president Chaudhry Nazir Ahmad and advocates Ihsan Lillah and S. A. Bokhari also condemned the murder of Mr Bhatti. --------------------------------- Cases against Samiullah, Irfan Marwat to be withdrawn KARACHI: The Sindh government has decided to withdraw a case pending against former DIG CIA, Karachi, Samiullah Marwat and former provincial Interior Minister Irfanullah Marwat in a sessions court. The two were facing trial for their alleged involvement in kidnapping and manhandling of three politicians during their tenure, whereas Saleem Jan Mazari had also been nominated as co-accused. A decision was taken in this regard recently with the consent of the chief minister Sindh and as such, state representatives were called on for instructions. The prosecution attorney then appeared before the Additional District and Sessions Judge, East, Syed Nazeer Hussain Shah, on Thursday and moved an application praying for the withdrawal of the case in question. --------------------------------- Body recovered from bag KARACHI: The Liaquatabad police recovered a corpse from a bag, while a man was killed in Gulshan-e-Iqbal police limits on Friday. The sources said Liaquatabad police were informed that a suspicious bag was lying near Memon Masjid in Bantwanagar. The police recovered the bag which contained the blindfolded body of a 30-year-old man whose hands and legs were tied. Further details were not available as the police were making arrangements to shift the corpse to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital till the filing of this report. The sources claimed that he was not killed by firing, but the cause of death could not be ascertained. Shafiq (25), a resident of Zia-ul-Haq Colony, was killed in the Gulshan-e-Iqbal police precinct. The sources said he was an addict. The police were going to shift the corpse to the JPMC for autopsy till the filing of this report. Muhammad Saleem (21) was electrocuted in Artillery Maidan police limits. The sources said the received an electric shock in Lotia Building. The police shifted the body to the Civil Hospital for autopsy. --------------------------------- Policemen arrested after killing motorcyclist KARACHI: A motorcycle rider was shot dead by Aram Bagh police in Garden police limits on Friday. The policemen have been arrested on murder charges. Sources said a mobile team of Aram Bagh police saw three suspects riding a motorcycle near Dow Medical College. They signalled them to stop but the motorcycle riders fled. They were intercpected near Prince Cinema where they opened fire on the police. One of the riders was wounded in the retaliatory fire who was arrested along with his comrade while their accomplice managed to flee. The injured died on the way to hospital. The Garden police, hearing the gunshots, reached the spot and on the orders of DIG Malik Iqbal the Aram Bagh police party was detained. The Garden police also arrested an accused who was identified as Altaf Ahmad. He disclosed the names of his accomplices as Manzoor Ahmed, who managed to flee, and Wahab who died in the shootout. Those taken into custody are ASI Iqbal, constables Nazakat and Puristan, and mobile driver Muhammad Riaz. Cases have been registered against them and the motorcyclists. On contact, the DIG said no one would be allowed to take law in their hands and he had issued arrest orders of the police officials. Meanwhile, the city Jama'at-e-Islami has condemned the incident. In a hand-out, the JI leaders said the Anti-Terrorism Law had given police a licence to kill anybody on the streets. --------------------------------- Rangers arrest ASI involved in robberies KARACHI: An ASI of Qaumi Razakar Force, allegedly involved in robberies, was arrested by Rangers from FB Area on Friday, sources in the Rangers confided to The News. The sources revealed that officials of 'D Company' of 71 Wing of Sachal Rangers, deputed near Sohrab Goth, were informed that three armed people had barged into Education World School, located in FB Area and were busy looting. The message was conveyed to all mobiles of the Rangers and receiving the communication, a mobile team of D Company, reached the spot. Seeing the Rangers the culprits tried to flee on their motorbike but one of them was arrested. The other two could manage to flee as a police mobile, which also reached the spot, intercepted the Rangers' hindering the chase, Rangers sources complained. The Rangers officials later identified the accused as Kausar, an ASI of Qaumi Razakar Force and a resident of Bansra Gali, Murree. Further interrogation by Rangers officials was going till filing of this report --------------------------------- Man stabbed to death KARACHI: A 32-year old man, Abdul Baqi, was stabbed to death while the police recovered a tortured corpse on Friday. The sources said that the police on information recovered the corpse of Baqi lying near the Primery School of Gulbai, in Sher Shah. The police shifted it to the Civil Hospital. The police said that according to the MLO of Civil Hospital, the deceased was stabbed to death with an iron rod. The police said that the deceased was an infamous man of the area. The Gulistan-e-Jouhar police on information recovered a corpse from Chishti Nager, in Sector 10.The body is of a 35 year old man bearing marks of torture.The police shifted the corpse to the JPMC for autopsy. The hospital sources said that the deceased was strangulated to death. ROBBERIES: Bandits looted cash, gold ornaments, valuables and snatched 15 vehicles. Bandits looted Rs 17,447 from Aslam in Orangi Town; cash, jewellery and electrical appliances from the residence of Hatim in Azizabad; Rs 4,800 from Zia-ul-Islam in Shah Faisal Colony; cash, gold ornaments and electrical appliances from a house in New Karachi; cash, jewellery and valuables from a house in Gulshan-e-Iqbal; Rs 160,000, gold ornaments and electrical appliances from a residence in Aziz Bhatti police area and cash, jewellery and other valuables from a house in North Nazimabad. --------------------------------- Encroachments from Sabzi Mandi removed KARACHI, Oct 10: Over 300 push-carts and patharas (vendors selling goods on the ground) were removed and eight vendors, who tried to hinder the KMC's anti-encroachment operation at Sabzi Mandi, were arrested on Friday. These push-carts and patharawalas had completely encroached the footpath and almost half of University Road between Sabzi Mandi and New Town police station creating a hurdle in the way of a smooth flow of traffic. Eight persons - Mughal Khan, Ali Shah, Naveed, Mushtaq Ahmad, Imdad Ali Shah, Intezar Hussain, Mohammad Ameen and Mohammad Raheem - who tried to create a law and order situation were booked under Section 34-A PPC. In an other operation, the KMC staff removed a temporary animal market (bakra piri) set up near Hasan Square. Cattle owners were warned that if they set up the market here again their animals would be confiscated and they would be sent to jail. The KMC has urged the people to help it clear the city of land-grabbers. It urged the people to point out those parks, playgrounds, and other amenity plots which have been taken over by professional land-grabbers so that a well-planned action could be taken against the culprits. --------------------------------- Three shot dead in different incidents HYDERABAD: Three persons were shot dead on Friday including a Woman and a personal of Qasim Rangers. One Abdul Hafiz, 50, a resident of Latifabad No. 8, received nine bullets on his body when fired upon by unknown people at a hotel where he was having tea. Elder son of the decease, Nadeem, said that his father, Abdul Hafiz who was a Wapda employee had gone for tea at his favorite Shano Hotel located in Latifabad No. 8, where some unknown people shot him dead. He said that his father had no dispute with anybody. Abdul Hafiz had left a wife five daughter and five boys behind him. Meanwhile, Sabtain, 23, s/o Ghulam Shabir an on-duty personnel of Qasim Rangers was reportedly killed by unknown people at Qasim Chowk near the Rangers Depot. But the sources at Liaquat Medical College Hospital (LMCH) said that he had committed suicide. In another incident, A Woman was killed by three youths who were later arrested by Gulshan Hali police. Kanjo, 38, resident of Al- Wahid Colony and wife of Tulsi Das was shot dead by three young boys who had entered her house to commit dacoity. All the three youths were arrested during raids at different places by police. They were identified as Mureed s/o Saeed Jamali, Sabir Ali s/o Sardar Ali and Abdul Umad s/o Bashir Chang. Later the family members and the people of Al-Wahid colony arrived at SSP office and Hyderabad Press Club and demanded justice. An FIR was also lodged at Gulshan Hali Police Station by Tulsi Das. --------------------------------- America is biggest terrorist, says Harkat chief MUZAFFARABAD: The chief of Harkat ul-Ansar on Friday slammed the US decision placing his group on a list of terrorist organisations in the world. The United States "is the biggest terrorist," Maulana Mohammad Farooq said in a statement released here. He said that his organisation was engaged in a holy war against the "undemocratic, unconstitutional and immoral Indian occupation of Kashmir." "Fighting a war for freedom and basic rights is not terrorism," he said. Farooq said the UN charter gives the oppressed nations the right to launch an armed struggle after failing to find a solution to their problem through peaceful means. The Harkat ul-Ansar's struggle in Kashmir is fully in accordance with the UN charter, he said, adding that Kashmiris had been deprived by India of their legitimate right to self-determination for 50 long years. "It was why they (Kashmiris) were forced to take up arms to achieve their inalienable right," he said. Farooq described the United States as the "biggest terrorist of the world," saying that the Muslims all over the world were being subjected to atrocities with its "connivance." More than 700,000 Indian troops have turned Kashmir into a killing field, the Harkat chief said. "Why the US is keeping mum over it,"? he asked. He said 600,000 Iraqi children were subjected to US terrorism on account of the UN sanctions and similarly the Afghan Muslims were also confronted with conspiracies being hatched by the US. The Harkat chief said that the United States was frightened of Islamic movements. "The US fears that these movements will cause her destruction and that's why these are being branded terrorist organisations," the he said. He denounced allegations his outfit had links with captors of four Western tourists held in Kashmir. "Time and again we have condemned the kidnapping and a number of investigations by India as well as foreign countries have failed to find any link of Harkat ul-Ansar with the so-called Al-Faran," he said. "It is an Indian propaganda designed to discredit Kashmiri militants," he said. -------------------------------- Eight involved in sectarian killings arrested MULTAN: Eight outlaws alleged to be involved in various incidents of sectarian killings including Abu Bakar Zarar and Shahswar have reportedly been arrested by the police. Confirming this highly placed police officials termed it "a major breakthrough" as all the arrested outlaws had been involved in various incidents of sectarian killings. However, it is learnt that both the major outlaws have been nominated in the recent killing of a CIA inspector and three cops which is being investigated by a special team comprising senior officials of the Punjab police. --------------------------------- Six held on charge of killing Iranians RAWALPINDI: The police arrested six suspects, including a girl, in connection with the killing of five Iranian technicians. The girl and her paramour confessed to their involvement in the Sialkot bomb blast. --------------------------------- HRCP raps deaths in police custody KARACHI: Secretary General of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Zohra Yusuf, in a statement on Friday, said four people have been tortured to death in one month alone. She said the HRCP had noted with deep concern the increasing cases of deaths by torture in police custody in Sindh. Giving the details, she said two persons, Chanesar Palari and Finyas Masih, were tortured and died at Bhittai Nagar Police Station in Hyderabad, labour leader Rafique Khoso died in Tando Bago Police Station, Badin, and M Khan Birhamani (80) was tortured to death in Jhangar, District Dadu. Zohra said in the case of Khoso, the autopsy report had established that his death was caused due to torture. The judicial enquiries conducted in such cases, as well as punishment to the police officers, often did not meet the ends of justice, she added. The HRCP called upon the government to urgently introduce reforms in the police force so that the end of torture could be ensured as such practices were in total violation of all norms of human rights --------------------------------- 1,800 kg of fine quality hashish seized QUETTA: The Customs on Friday seized over 1,800 kilograms of fine quality hashish from a truck at Buleli checkpost on the outskirts of the city. The hashish, worth millions of dollars in the international black market, was being smuggled from Afghanistan and was intended for Karachi. The Customs authorities received information that a gang of drug smugglers would try to smuggle a large consignment of hashish from Afghanistan to Karachi. The authorities alerted the personnel deployed at the checkpost to foil the smuggling attempt. Customs sources said the driver was signaled to stop the truck when it approached the checkpost in the early hours of Friday. While checking the truck (No SB-3192), the personnel recovered over 1,800 kg of hashish concealed in the truck. The driver Noor Muhammad and Cleaner Amir Muhammad were arrested. Customs officials have registered a case and investigations are in progress. However, despite the fact that the Customs have made this massive haul after planning for a couple of days, none of the real drug smugglers could be arrested except for the driver and the cleaner, sources said. Such occurrences have become a feature in such recoveries due to the reasons best known to the Customs officials only. --------------------------------- 'India's peaceful nuclear test was part of bomb research' NEW DELHI: A leading scientist has admitted for the first time that India's 1974 nuclear test was part of military research into making a bomb, the Press Trust of India reported on Friday. Nuclear scientist Raja Ramanna said the test in Pokhran, in the desert state of Rajasthan, was not designed as a "peaceful nuclear explosion" as India had claimed. "The Pokhran test was a bomb, I can tell you now," he told reporters late Thursday, when asked if India possessed an atomic bomb. Ramanna, a former junior defence minister, said the Pokhran test - which had supposedly been a limited explosion to aid nuclear physics research and to back up civilian applications - had earned India international suspicion. It was the "beginning of the problem" of nuclear capable nations "wanting to punish India", he said. New Delhi says it has not built weapons but retains the option to do so. Last year it refused to sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), arguing they were discriminatory and lacked a time-frame for world disarmament by the official nuclear powers of Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States. India also argues the nuclear powers have developed laboratory simulations capable of taking the place of full-scale tests. ---------------------------------