Islamabad High Court has directed trial court to conduct judicial inquiry of UK national Farooq Ali who found dead one and half years ago in Ramada Hotel Islamabad – his heirs claimed it was a brutal premeditated murder saying a fair trial will disclose names behind the heinous crime.
A single-member bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) comprising Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir announced a 7-page order the other day in response to criminal revision against Additional Sessions Judge decision to prosecute nominated accused persons allegedly involved in murder of Farooq Ali.
Petitioner Dr Rehiana B. Ali, sister of Farooq Ali says her brother has been living in Ramada by Wyndham hotel, Club Road, Islamabad since May 2021, adding, “We believe he was murdered on 11th or early hours of 12th March 2022. His body, however, was only ‘discovered’ on 16th March 2022.
Representing petitioner in the case for adjudication before proper forums, Advocate Sharafat A Chaudhry earlier sought District Session Judge orders for registration of First Information Report (FIR) in the matter. The petitioner has alleged the police failed to conduct proper investigation saying no arrest of nominated accused persons was made and resultantly no evidence was collected properly.
Advocate Sharafat also filed a private complaint for judicial inquiry into murder but Additional District & Session Judge dismissed the complaint in October 22. Over dismissal of the private complaint, Sharafat A Chaudhry invoked jurisdiction of the IHC and filed criminal revision against impugned order of Additional District & Session Judge. He urged the court to set aside the session judge dismissal and issue directives to the Sessions Court for judicial inquiry into the death who will summon the accused persons in the large interest of justice.
A copy of the IHC decision is available with Law Today. Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir accepted the criminal revision petition and directed the Session Court to assign the case to another judge than the earlier judge who dismissed the complaint of the petitioner. It has been stated in the verdict, “On the impugned order, dated 22.10.2022, is not sustainable. The learned court below erred in concluding that sufficient material was not available to proceed further and overstretched the proceedings i.e. the preliminary inquiry to a full-fledged trial. The instant revision petition is, therefore, allowed. Consequently, the impugned order, dated 22.10.2022, is hereby set-aside by remanding the matter to the learned trial court for further proceedings in accordance with law. The matter is directed to be assigned to another learned court, competent to adjudicate the same”.
