Additional District & Session Judge Zeba Chaudhry orders to handover Shahbaz Gill to police for 48 hours physical remand
ISLAMABAD, August 17 (SABAH): A local court on Wednesday accepted the police’s request seeking an extension of Pakistan Tehreek-Insaf (PTI) leader Dr. Shahbaz Gill’s physical remand in a sedition case.
The reserved verdict was delivered by Additional District and Session Judge Islamabad Zeba Chaudhry, following which Gill was handed over to the police for two more days of physical remand.
The court stated that it is not fully satisfied that the PTI leader’s investigation is complete, adding that Gill should be handed over to the police for another 48 hours to conclude the investigation in the case. The court said that the police should receive Shahbaz Gill from Adiyala Jail and should recover whatever things wants to recover from him so that the fair trial of the case is ensured and all the proceedings of the case are moved forward on merit. The court said that the police should move forward the investigations into the case without any pressure. The judge said that she is agreed with the point of view of the prosecution regarding the incomplete investigation of the case.
The court had reserved its verdict earlier in the day after the completion of arguments by all parties.
The additional district and sessions judge Zeba Chaudhry took up the case for rehearing on Wednesday morning following the orders of the Islamabad High Court over the government’s plea challenging the dismissal of Gill’s physical remand by the duty magistrate.
Lawyers Salman Safdar, Faisal Chaudhry, Shoaib Shaheen and Niazullah Niazi representing Gill — who has been behind the bars since last Tuesday (August 9) — appeared in court.
At the outset of the hearing, Special Prosecutor Raja Rizwan Abbasi informed the court that the judicial magistrate remanded Gill into police custody for two days but the investigation officer requested for an extension in the remand.
He said that the duty magistrate should have considered all aspects of the matter but he rejected the request. “How did he [magistrate] take Gill’s statement for the final statement?” he asked.
Abbasi maintained that a remand of at least 10 days is granted in ordinary cases while this is a case of criminal conspiracy.
He contended that the accused PTI leader is telling lies again and again and, therefore, further interrogation and a polygraph test is required.
The special prosecutor further stated that Gill has already confessed that his driver has one of his mobile phones.
“The IO clearly wrote in the plea that it’s not just about the recovery [of the phone] but there are other aspects that need to be investigated,” he said.
After the completion of the arguments by special prosecutor, Gill’s lawyer Salman Safdar gave arguments. He maintained that the case against Gill is based on malafide intent and political revenge because he mentioned the names of nine PML-N leaders including Maryam Nawaz, Ayaz Sadiq and others.
He complained that some aspects of the basis of seeking remand have been kept secret while the case record hasn’t been provided to the defence. He said that it needs to be ascertained why the police want Gill to be remanded.
“The case has been based on the selection of words and speech […] and the police have the speech.” He also raised objection over the admissibility of the case, saying that the complainant is a magistrate who filed the case on behalf of the bureaucracy and army but a treason case cannot be filed without the permission of the federal government.
Moreover, he said that the sections imposed in the case are of capital punishment and life imprisonment, asking “if these sections are applicable on such a speech.”
“Gill made some wrong statements but things could be wrong but they don’t come under treason or criminal conspiracy,” he said. Gill’s lawyer also contended that Gill had been remanded for three days and the request wasn’t turned down immediately. He said that the IO failed to complete the investigation in three days while the forensic department had sent the reports within 24 hours.
On Tuesday, the IHC ordered the judicial magistrate to hear the prosecution’s physical remand appeal of Gill, again and decide on the matter.
During Tuesday’s hearing, IHC Acting Chief Justice Aamer Farooq declared the Advocate General Islamabad barrister Jahangir Khan Jadoon’s review appeal maintainable, asking the judicial magistrate to hear the matter again and decide it on merit.
The IHC had earlier in the day reserved its decision on the AGI’s plea. It later accepted the AGI’s request, who had argued that the PTI leader’s physical remand was needed to collect additional evidence, such as his phone and the names of those who were behind the offence.
Gill was arrested from Bani Gala Chowk in Islamabad last week after a video clip of his controversial remarks went viral on social media. He was subsequently booked on charges of inciting mutiny in the military.