Sehwan judge gets bail extension till Feb 21 in sexual assault case

JAMSHORO: A session court in Kotri on Friday extended a bail plea of a suspended Sehwan civil judge Imtiaz Bhutto allegedly involved in raping a litigant woman till February 21, ARY NEWS reported.

According to details, the suspended judge appeared before a court of the additional session judge Kotri.

The court accepted his plea and extended the bail for seven days till February 21. The lawyers pleaded with the court to record statement of the victim in the courtroom.

During the proceedings, the court also asked the accused as to from which laboratory he wanted a report on his DNA test.

“If you chooses a laboratory other than the Liaquat University Of Medical and Health Sciences (LUMS) than you will have to bear expenses of it,” the judge remarked.

On January 30, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Naeem Shaikh on Thursday constituted a three-member special board to look into sexual assault charges levelled against Sehwan civil judge Imtiaz Bhutto.

The board was constituted after the accused expressed dissatisfaction over a probe by a joint investigation team (JIT) and demanded that officials from some other district be tasked to investigate the matter.

The special board will look into the allegations and propose recommendations in this regard.

Imtiaz Bhutto, who was put under suspension on “misconduct” on January 18, is out on pre-arrest bail until February 2.

An FIR was registered under Section 376 and 506 of the Pakistan Penal Code on a complaint of Station House Officer (SHO) Sehwan Mazhar Naich, nominating the judge for allegedly raping a woman litigant inside his chamber.

The case was lodged in light of the statement of the alleged victim.