KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday set aside the conviction of five accused in a case related to possession of illicit arms and explosive material.
An anti-terrorism court had sentenced Abdul Haq and Ali Raza to 14 years imprisonment, Kashif to eight years, while seven years each to Salim and Arshad. A division bench of the high court announced its verdict on the appeals of the five convicts after hearing arguments from both sides.
The court ordered their release provided that they were not required in any other criminal case.
The convicts’ counsel, Advocate Mumtaz Ali Khan Deshmukh submitted before the court that a fake case was registered against his clients.
He alleged that weapons and explosives were shown to have been recovered from the convicts’ possession to implicate them in the criminal case.
On May 9, an anti-terrorism court had found the suspects guilty of possessing illicit arms and explosives and awarded them jail terms of varying periods.
Korangi police had arrested the suspects after an alleged encounter in Korangi Industrial Area and claimed to have recovered arms and explosive from their possession. The police claimed that the suspects were planning terrorist activities in the metropolis.