A local court in Quetta on Friday acquitted the former member of the Balochistan Assembly Abdul Majeed Khan Achakzai in the traffic warden hit-and-run case and Pakistanis are angry. The reason? Because the court could not find any evidence against the former MPA and Pakistanis cannot believe it!
Achakzai was arrested in June 2017, days after a speeding vehicle belonging to him, hit and ran over traffic warden Haji Attaullah at Quetta’s GPO Chowk, Pakistanis are now angry on the court for injustice. Video of the incident made rounds on social media.
Sadly, the warden lost his life at the hospital after suffering from serious injuries. A cyclist, Abdul Ghafoor Baloch was also injured by Achakzai’s vehicle.
Achakzai, the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) ex-MPA, was charged with manslaughter for running over a traffic warden.
At first, police registered a case of the accident against unidentified persons. However, as soon as CCTV footage went viral on social media, Balochistan police registered a case against the former MPA.
On June 25, 2017, Achakzai was arrested from his residence under the charges of terrorism, murder, and attempt to murder. Civil lines police had submitted a challan in the Anti-Terrorist Court. However, the terrorism charge was later withdrawn as police failed to prove its charges in this regard.
Later, the case was shifted to the model court where the case remained under trial for three years.
Former MPA acquitted in Quetta traffic warden hit-and-run case
The court ruled in his favor by giving him the benefit of doubt. Presiding Judge Dost Muhammad Mandokhel of a model court acquitted Achakzai.
Achakzai was present in the court along with his lawyers Kamran Murtaza, Khalilur Rehman, Noor Jan Buledi, and Jaffar Awan when the judge announced the judgment. In addition to this, the court’s detailed judgment has not been issued as yet.
CCTV footage isn’t a crystal clear evidence?
Achakzai allegedly ran over the warden after the latter ordered him to stop at GPO Chowk. It lies in the maximum security area of Balochistan’s capital. What first seemed to be an accident, later turned out to be a deliberate act on the MPA’s part once CCTV footage of the incident emerged.
Moreover, there were also reports of Achakzai being drunk and driving recklessly when the officer signaled him to pull over. Another footage of Achakzai also went viral which showed him exchanging harsh words with a warden and then running him over.
In addition to this, Achakzai even admitted that he drove his official vehicle when the accident took place. He said he would settle the issue by paying compensation to the family of the late traffic sergeant as well as the injured passerby.
Public outrage on the injustice by the Quetta court
This would not be the first instance of such a heinous act that would go unpunished. People are deploring the criminal behavior of the former MPA. Moreover, they are demanding the CJP to take notice of the injustice with the trending hashtag #CJPtakenotice on Twitter.
Despite more than adequate evidence, the court got off Achakzai scot-free. Why is our judicial system helpless before high and mighty? Access to justice has become nothing but a mere mockery in a country like Pakistan where the poor suffer and the influential people get away with atrocities.
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