RECORDER REPORT

ISLAMABAD: The Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Islamabad Monday issued arrest warrants against Tehreek-e-Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah (TLYR) leaders Khadim Hussain Rizvi, Afzal Qadri and others in Faizabad sit-in case.

ATC judge Shahrukh Arjumand conducted the hearing of the case and expressed his annoyance over non-appearance of Khadim Rizvi, Pir Afzal Qadri, Maulana Inayat and Sheikh Izhar. In this matter, police also failed to submit final charge-sheet (challan) and, therefore, the court directed police to submit final challan before the court till April 4.

During the hearing, prosecutor Shafqat Chaudhry informed the court that despite service of various summons, the clerics did not appear before the court. He said that police could not execute the arrest warrants since the whereabouts of these clerics were not known.

The court ordered the prosecution to issue proclamations for Rizvi and other leaders of TLYR and deferred the hearing till April 4. On March 6, the ATC had declared Rizvi as well as other leaders of TLYR as absconders and initiated the process to declare them as proclaimed offenders under Section 87 (absconding) over their continuous failure to appear before the court.