The Supreme Court (SC) deemed the investigation into the torture and kidnapping case of journalists Asad Toor, Absar Alam, and Matiullah Jan “unsatisfactory” on Monday, and ordered the appointment of competent investigative officers to handle the cases.
During the hearing of the case against harassment of journalists, a three-member bench led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa expressed anger over the lack of progress in the investigation concerning journalist Matiullah Jan’s ‘abduction’ case.
The apex court ordered publishing the sketches of the journalist’s attackers in newspapers and advertising a reward amount for the suspects’ arrest. The SC granted Islamabad police 30 days. The case was adjourned till June, with the date of hearing to be fixed later. The court also ordered to send the complete CCTV footage of the kidnappers in the Matiullah Jan case to Punjab forensic lab.
The court began the hearing by calling the senior superintendent of police (SSP) to the rostrum. “There is a recording of the incident, why were the kidnappers still not found?” the CJP inquired. The SSP denied there was any CCTV footage of the incident.
