Book Ehsanullah Ehsan in Malala attack case: Senate body directs interior ministry, KP govt

ISLAMABAD – The Sen­ate’s Standing Committee on Interior has issued directives to the ministry of interior, the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and police to include Ehsanullah Ehsan as a suspect in the Malala Yousafzai attack case.

The directive issued days after the former TTP spokesperson confessed to being a part of the militant group also sugges­ted that a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) should be constituted to interrogate him [Ehsan] as he had first-hand information of the case.

Chairman of the standing committee, Rehman Malik, in a letter addressed to the interior ministry, KP home ministry and the Inspector General Police said that since the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had claimed the responsibility for the attack on Ms Yousafzai at the time when Ehsan was the spokesperson for the militant group, ‘he should be included in the investigation’.

The letter said that the responsibility of attack on Ms Yousafzai was claimed by the Taliban and was announced by their then spokesperson, Ehsanullah Ehsan.

“While he [Ehsan] is now in custody and has made several revelations about the involvement of India, Afghanistan and other countries in terrorism activities, it is important to investigate the motives behind the attack on Ms Yousafzai and see if any country was involved,” letter said.

“The name may be put in the FIR of the attack on Ms Yousafzai for further course of the investigation. A JIT should be constituted to interrogate him as he has first hand information of the case. Moreover progress of the previous investigation and details of the FIR and statements of the young girl, her parents, colleagues and other witnesses may be put before the committee,” letter added.

PPP stalwart Rehman Malik also took to Twitter to announce the decision made by the committee.

https://twitter.com/SenRehmanMalik/status/862064782412726272

Malala Yousafzai who was born in 1998, received her early education in Ming­o­ra, Swat, where for many years the Taliban had prohibited girls from attending school.

The young education and women’s right activist was shot in the head and neck on in 2012 by militants and was taken to the United Kingdom for treatment.

Malala is receiving education and living with her family in UK.