SC orders JIT to probe Mashal's lynching, bars KP from forming judicial commission

ISLAMABAD - On Wednesday the Supreme Court of Pakistan prohibited the Khyber Pukhtunkhwa government from forming a judicial commission to probe Mardan lynching incident.

Hearing a suo-motu case into Mashal Khan's brutal murder by a violent mob, a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar stopped the formation of the judicial commission,  a summary for which was moved by chief minister Pervaiz Khattak, saying a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) formed by Inspector General Police KP Salahuddin Khan Mehsud will continue to probe the incident.

"When a forum already exists for investigation, why did the chief minister [Pervez Khattak] announce this [formation of the judicial body]?" the Chief Justice asked.

"We cannot put more burden on the judiciary," said Saqib Nisar adding that judiciary was already "burned out" due to the high number of cases.

He said that Mashal's murder is 'one of the most tragic incidents' of the country's history which cannot be described in words.

Justice Nisar questioned IG Mehsud why representatives of the armed forces had not been included in the JIT, and directed him to do the needful in this regard.

During the hearing, additional advocate general KP informed the court that an initial report of the incident has been submitted to the court.

"Two First Information Reports (FIR) of the case have been registered in which 28 suspects have been nominated," said IGP KPK.

"Out of these, 24 suspects have been arrested," he added.

The KP police head told the newsmen that a JIT headed by a superintendent of police (SP) and comprising Intelligence Bureau and police officials had been formed to probe the incident that led to the killing of Mass Communication student Mashal Khan.

Salahuddin Mehsud has claimed that 80 per cent of the investigation into the mob violence has been completed and a challan will soon be presented in the court.