Fugitive Rao Anwar asks Supreme Court to unfreeze bank accounts

ISLAMABAD: Absconding former SSP Malir Rao Anwar has written another letter to the Supreme Court, asking it to unfreeze his bank accounts and allow him to maintain interaction with media. 

Headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, the bench of the apex court was hearing a suo motu case pertaining to the death of Naqeebullah Mehsud in a staged encounter in Karachi.

At the outset of the hearing, the chief justice revealed that Rao Anwar had sent another letter in which he has sought unfreezing of his assets and permission to talk to media.

He expressed skepticism about veracity of the letter, saying it was not clear whether the letter was authentic or not.

The bench lamented that so far no progress has been made with regard to the arrest of the absconding police officer.

Military Intelligence (MI) and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) submitted their respective reports to the judges, which said Sindh police were extended every possible technical and intelligence cooperation to find Rao Anwar.

Sindh police chief Allah Dino Khowaja maintained his force was making all-out efforts to arrest him. He said a charge-sheet against the arrested members of the team that carried out encounter in which Naqeeb was killed was submitted to the trial court concerned.

Justice Umar Ata Bandial said it was possible that someone would be providing the sacked police officer shelter from the police.

The chief justice asked if CCTV footage of Rao Anwar when he was stopped while trying to flee abroad at Islamabad airport was available.

To which, IG Sindh said the CCTV recordings were secured and provided to a probe team.

To a query about whether the judges could view them, he replied in the affirmative, requesting that they should watch it in their chamber.

The chief justice directed the director general of Airport Security Force (ASF) to appear before it on next hearing.

The hearing was adjourned till Friday when the bench would take up the case at the apex court’s Karachi registry.