Karachi: A Counter-Terrorism Court (ATC) welcomed a man on Thursday, allegedly agenda for the Research and Analysis Department of the Intelligence Agency (RAW), incarcerated for the Watch War and conspiracy against the state.
Judge ATC-XV held trial in the judicial complex at Karachi Central Prison, where he convicted Muhammad Saleem and sentenced to life imprisonment for three counts of crimes under Section 121-A (punished for conspiracy to start a war or war observation with Pakistan), 122 (collecting weapons, etc., intending to wait for war with Pakistan).
The court also sentenced 14 years in prison for possessing unlicensed weapons and explosives, each with 10 years in prison. However, the court ruled that all sentences should be conducted simultaneously.
The defendant appeared on bail and, under the auspices of the verdict, was detained.
Prosecutors say Saleem ilegally entered Pakistan from India in 1989; SIU arrested him with illegal weapons and explosives in October 2024
“In the present situation, the grenade with detonator grenades was recovered, which proves that… if not owned by the defendant (probably recovered from the defendant), it may be used to wreak havoc on the innocent.”
The court noted that records show that during the trial, the defendant revealed that in 1989, he illegally entered Pakistan after crossing the border and coming to Karachi. Later, he allegedly obtained a computerized national ID card and a Pakistani passport.
Speech dawnProsecutor Anila Malik said documents related to the defendant’s travel history were presented in the court during the trial, indicating that he traveled to India three times in 2012, 2013 and 2014.
She added that the defendant used to drive a rickshaw in India, but, after an accident that killed a child, he illegally entered Pakistan.
Prosecutors claimed that during the investigation, the documented evidence revealed his connection to Indian agents and that he had been asking them to work.
The court, in accordance with its order, pointed out that the defendant had not made any reasonable grounds for visiting India in his statement. It added that he did not deny that he entered the country illegally in 1989.
On the other hand, the defense attorney argued at the trial that the prosecution failed to establish any connection between the defendant and the original. He noted: “There is no CRO record against the defendant and in any other case he was not a previous conviction.”
Advisory measures believe that the prosecutor reviewed eight witnesses, but all were police officers or defendants’ relatives, without private witnesses.
The court refused to defend the defense, noting that unless the defense was able to successfully undermine its credibility or record any intention in police to revoke the witness against the defendant, police officers were as capable as anyone else.
“It is observed that in the current case, anyone from the public will try not to indulge themselves as witnesses of the incident in order to avoid hostility toward the future of terrorists,” the verdict said.
In October 2024, the Special Investigation Department (SIU) arrested the defendant and seized grenades, rocket launchers, 9mm pistols and several fake service cards from various his departments.
The SIU claimed that the defendant also found several passports and ID cards under different names, while finding evidence and documents to register multiple times for suspicion of India.
They claim he once represented RAW, who allegedly collected sensitive information and conducted disruptive activities, operated in Karachi.
Three separate FIRs were registered with the SIU Police Department under Section 23(1) of the Weapons Act of Faith, 2013, Section 23(1), Section 4 and 5 of the Explosive Substances Act, and Section 7 was read in Section 7 of the Counter-Terrorism Act of 1997.
Posted in Dawn on September 26, 2025
