LHC grants bail to Sialkot police officer

The LHC ordered police not to arrest Waqar Ali Chohan till Aug 30.—File photo

RAWALPINDI: The Lahore High Court granted on Monday protective bail to former Sialkot district police officer Waqar Ali Chohan accused of having done nothing to stop the lynching of two young brothers by a mob. 
The court ordered police not to arrest the official till Aug 30. 

Justice Hassan Raza Pasha of LHC’s Rawalpindi bench asked SSP Chohan to submit a bond of Rs100,000 and cite a witness for the bail granted for a week to enable him to approach the competent court in Sialkot to defend himself in the case pertaining to the killing of the teenagers on Aug 15. 

The DPO, through his lawyer Sardar Mohammad Ishaq Khan, sought the protection, expressing fears he would be arrested if he tried to approach the court in Sialkot. 

The lawyer said Mr Chohan’s name had not been mentioned in the FIR about the killing of Mughees and Muneeb and he deserved bail. 

The police official expressed apprehensions in his bail plea that the case had been hyped up because of political motives and he could be victimised and arrested. 

He said Mr Chohan had learnt through the media that the Sialkot district coordination officer had issued orders for his detention at midnight. He said the orders had not been served on the official and he could not be detained till he was served the orders. 

Talking to Dawn outside the courtroom, Mr Chohan denied he was present at the time of the lynching and alleged that the TV footage of the incident was fabricated. 

When he reached the place, he said, the two bodies were hanging and he dissuaded the mob from setting them on fire. 

He said he had been pictured while dissuading the mob from burning the bodies and the portion had been inserted into the video at a point where the boys were being thrashed. 

When asked why did the local station house officer who was present there not try to save the brothers, Mr Chohan said it was a fault on his part, but apparently he was overawed by the frenzy of the mob. 

He said reports submitted by different intelligence agencies on the incident said that the DPO had arrived late and many eyewitnesses were ready to depose in his favour.