ISLAMABAD (APP): The Supreme Court on Friday directed the police to clear the Katcha area in Rahim Yar Khan (RYK) from dacoits.
A three-member SC bench comprising Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel heard the suo motu case on the attack at a Hindu temple in Rahim Yar Khan.
During the course of proceedings, the court expressed annoyance over police for arresting an 8-year-old after the attack and ordered that action be taken against the SHO who arrested the child.
The Chief Justice asked why the concerned SHO had not been arrested yet?
The Additional Advocate General Punjab said that 95 people had been arrested for attacking the temple. He said that National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) was providing assistance for the facial recognition of the arrested persons.
The court ordered to complete the identification of the suspects involved in the attack on the temple within a week and said that after the suspects were identified, the arrested innocent persons should be released and accused’s challans should be presented in a trial court. The court also directed the trial court to decide the case in four months without any delay.
The court said that it has been informed that restoration work inside the temple has been completed and ordered that work on the exterior of the temple should also be completed within a month.
The bench also ordered the police to maintain the deployment of security personnel in Bhong village of Rahim Yar Khan and said that it has been informed that the dacoits present in the Katcha are threatening people and damaging property along with the threats of kidnapping. The court ordered to restore peace by clearing the area from dacoits. The bench ordered that the Punjab government and IG should ensure law and order in the area.
Justice Gulzar Ahmed said that the country was not able to get rid of dacoits since its independence.
The Punjab additional advocate general said that the Katcha area had a border with Sindh on one side. At this, the chief justice asked how the task couldn’t be completed if all sides work together.
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail remarked that this was not a Hindu-Muslim issue, but an issue of the intention of the administration. “Temples were restored in Zhob and local scholars were special guests,” he said.
The apex court also directed to recover the amount from suspects named in the temple attack case within a month and pay damages to the temple administration.
The Additional IG South Punjab said that Hindus and Muslims had been living together in Bhong for centuries. There was no such issue but people were incited through social media, he added. He said that there were about 250 law enfor-cement personnel, including police and Rangers in the area. The Court also directed the Punjab government and IG Police Punjab to submit report in one month. The court adjourned the hearing of the case for a month and summoned the Bahawalpur commissioner and Rahim Yar Khan depu-ty commissioner to the next hearing.
Last week, over a dozen men, armed with sticks, had vandalised a Hindu temple in Rahim Yar Khan, shouting slogans and desecrating idols in the place of worship. The video clip of the incident went viral on social media, drawing sharp criticism from rights activists in Pakistan.
