Minor driver denied bail in Lahore DHA accident case – Pakistan

LAHORE: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Saturday denied post-arrest bail to a minor driver in a DHA road accident case in which six members of a family were killed.

Judge Khalid Arshad rejected Afnan Shafqat’s bail application after hearing the arguments of the prosecution and the applicant.

The plaintiff’s lawyer argued that the police had completed their investigation and there was no reason to keep his client behind bars. He asked the court to release the defendant on bail.

A prosecutor said the trial in the case has begun and the defendant is not eligible for bail at this time.

The Military Police filed the FIR on a complaint by Rafaqat Ali, who lost his wife Rukhsana Bibi (45), son Husnain (25), daughter-in-law Ayesha (23), son-in-law Sajjad (30), four-month-old grandson Huzaifa and granddaughter Anaya (4) in the fatal road accident.

In addition to driver Afnan, his father Shafqat Ali and his friends, Ali Abdullah, Muhammad Saad and Muhammad Ibrahim were also found guilty on several counts in the police indictment.

The investigation report states that the underage defendant and his friends first harassed the female passengers before attacking their car.

Real estate agent Shafqat was accused of letting his underage son drive a car illegally.

Published in Dawn, June 2, 2024