KARACHI, Jan 22 (TNS): Former Malir SSP Rao Anwar, who is under scrutiny over his alleged involvement in the extrajudicial killing of Naqeebullah Mehsud, on Sunday alleged that two members of the police inquiry team investigating the matter held “personal biases” against him on the pretext of which he has decided to “boycott the proceedings of the police inquiry committee”.
Anwar, along with other suspects, had been asked to appear before the DIG East on Sunday night at 11pm to record his statement, but he failed to show up.
Later, DIG East Sultan Khowaja briefed the media persons that police tried to reach Anwar but his phone is switched off. “We had ordered Rao Anwar and his team to appear today, but they didn’t come,” he said.
DIG Khowaja also raised suspicions over the suspected suicide attack on Anwar’s convoy earlier this week, in which three suspected assailants were reportedly killed and four policemen were injured.
“We will thoroughly investigate the attack [on Rao Anwar’s convoy] from all possible angles,” the DIG East asserted.
“If he [Anwar] doesn’t have faith in police, he can appear before the human rights committee,” said Khowaja.
Rao Anwar has also been asked to appear before the Sindh IG and National Commission for Human Rights on Monday at 10.30am. A notification in this regard was issued by SP Investigation East Abid Qaimkhani.
Earlier, while talking to Dawn, the currently-suspended police official claimed that instead of asking him about the incident the members of police inquiry team “were bent upon implicating me in the case”.
Rao Anwar was removed from his post on Saturday on the orders of Sindh Inspector General of Police A. D. Khowaja.
An inquiry committee looking into the alleged murder of Mehsud had linked Anwar with the alleged extra-judicial killing of the 27-year old Waziristan native, who was killed on January 13 in Shah Latif Town.
Anwar claimed that he had “fully cooperated” when he, along with the police party, appeared before the inquiry committee. “Later on, I was told that another session of the committee would be held at DIG East office after Friday prayers.”
The former Malir SSP claimed he had tried to contact the office of DIG East around four times after the Friday prayers, but couldn’t get any positive response from them.
SP Investigation Malir Abid Qaimkhani, in a statement issued on Sunday evening, categorically denied the claims made by Rao Anwar that he had tried to contact DIG East office four times but he was not called for a meeting.
The SP Investigation asked Anwar, along with other suspects, to appear again before the DIG East on Sunday night at 11pm to record his statement, but he failed to abide by.
Earlier in the day, the SP investigation, through a separate notification, ordered SSP Rao Anwar and SI Aman Ullah, former SHO Shah Latif Town, to appear before him on Monday (tomorrow) to record their statement.
