‘Controversial’ CCPO to lead JIT probing gun attack on Imran

Imran Khan, Moonis Elahi discuss long march security n PTI Chairman says he can’t wait for elections because of country’s economic situation

LAHORE        -     The provincial government on Tuesday changed for the third time the head of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) which was formed a week ago to probe the gun attack on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan in Wazirabad. Lahore Capital City Police Officer Ghulam Mahmood Dogar, the only police officer left in the Punjab province and enjoys the trust of the PTI chairman, has been entrusted with the responsibility to lead the investigation team. Dogar, who defied several orders of the federal government in the last one month, is considered a close confidant of Imran Khan and Ch Parvez Elahi. He was also placed under suspension through a notification by the establishment division last week, but later the LHC set aside the federal government’s orders. According to a fresh notification issued on late Tuesday night, a joint investigation team was reconstituted headed by Lahore CCPO Ghulam Mahmood Dogar to conduct the investigation The newly formed six member JIT consists of CCPO Ghulam Mahmood Dogar (as Convener), Syed Khurram Ali RPO DG Khan, AIG Monitoring and Investigation Branch Punjab, Ehsan Ullah Chohan, SP Potohar Division Rawalpindi, Malik Tariq Mehboob and SP/ RO CTD Lahore, Naseeb Ullah Khan. Any Co-opted member by JIT will be part of this modified JIT as member. The notification also said the Convener of the JIT Ghulam Mehmood Dogar will depute one of the members for the purpose of submission of report as required under section 19(1) of Anti-Terrorism Act 1997. On the other hand, PTI chief Imran Khan and PML-Q leader Moonis Elahi discussed details of the joint investigation team formed to investigate the Wazirabad attack. The two discussed the JIT in a meeting held at Khan’s Zaman Park residence in Lahore. Sources said that during the meeting the two also discussed the security for the Haqeeqi Azadi march being led by the PTI. “The nation is standing with Imran Khan and wants transparent elections,” Moonis told Khan. The PTI chief said the party’s Haqeeqi Azadi march is not far from reaching its destination. Former prime minister Imran Khan also reiterated that prosperity and economic stability are linked to the judicial system of our country. Addressing the Haqeeqi Azadi marchers via a video link, Khan requested Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial to hear the three “landmark cases” registered by the PTI, Arshad Sharif’s murder, Azam Swati’s custodial torture, and the Wazirabad FIR issue. Imran Khan stated that being a citizen of Pakistan it is his constitutional right to register an FIR; however, despite being the former prime minister of the country his FIR after the attack on him wasn’t registered. The PTI chief further added that the coalition government urges him to wait for general elections, “but I can’t wait because I worried about the economic situation of the country.” “I am sure that like landslide victory in by-elections PTI will clean sweep all other parties even if elections are held as per schedule but we can’t wait for a year because the country is in a crisis,” he added. PTI Chairman Imran Khan also Tuesday said criticised the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for repeatedly giving decisions against the party, claiming the body is on an “agenda”. Khan, while addressing the long marchers via a video link, urged Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial to hear the case filed against the Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja. The former premier lamented that the election body only heard PTI’s foreign funding case and an investigation was conducted in a biased manner. He highlighted that PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, and PPP leader Yousuf Raza Gillani during their government’s tenure also received gifts from Toshakhana.

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