LAHORE, Mar 09 (NNI): The Punjab IG police has set up a fact-finding committee to launch a probe into the causes of the death of PTI worker Ali Bilal and the damage done during the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf rally on March 8.
According to a notification, a 2-member committee comprising DIG Sadiq Dogar and SSP Imran Kishwar has been directed to submit its report within three days.
The fact-finding committee would launch a probe into 7 points.
The committee would find the reasons behind clashes between PTI workers and police; it would consider the legal position of protests; it would determine cause of eruption of fight and its motives; it would log how many police officials and PTI workers got hurt during the scuffle; it would ascertain in what circumstances, PTI worker Bilal died; when and where Bilal’s death occurred; was Bilal in police custody as per the reports on social media; who brought deceased Bilal to hospital; and what was the registration number of car in which Bilal was driven to hospital.
The fact finding committee would start its investigations keeping in view all these points.
According to the statement of Punjab caretaker Chief Minister Syed Mohsin Naqvi, a private vehicle left the deceased worker at the hospital. The occupants of the vehicle are being searched with the help of Safe City cameras.
It is pertinent to mention here that PTI Chairman Imran Khan said on Wednesday that one of its workers was killed after police launched a crackdown on those participating in the party’s rally following the imposition of Section 144.
The party had planned to kick start its election campaign on Wednesday with a rally from Zaman Park to Data Darbar. However, it later put off the campaign until Saturday but dedicated the rally to judiciary.
Before the start of the rally, the Punjab government imposed the Section 144 in Lahore for seven days with immediate effect, banning rallies, processions and gatherings in the provincial capital due to security reasons.
Soon after the imposition of the Section 144, police started detaining PTI workers and closed roads leading to the Zaman park to block the rally. The things turned sour when police officials resorted to tear gas shelling, water canons and baton charge to disperse the participants from gathering for the rally.
Later the PTI chief called off the rally and claimed that party worker Ali Bilal was “murdered by Punjab police”. The official Twitter handle of the PTI also shared a video showing Mr Bilal and other PTI workers inside a police van, claiming that the party workers was killed during police custody.
However, a spokesperson of the Punjab government rejected the claims of custodial killing, saying the purported videos were not from Wednesday’s incident but the ‘Jail Bharo Tehreek’ (court arrest movement). NNI
