Zainab murder suspect's trial to be held in jail on daily basis, court informed
February 09, 2018
LAHORE: The trial of the prime accused in the rape and murder case of Zainab, Imran Ali Naqshbandi, will be held inside the jail, the Punjab prosecutor general informed the anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Friday.
Moreover, Punjab Prosecutor General Ahtesham Qadir informed that the next proceedings will take place inside the jail.
The trial will begin after copies of the challan against him are furnished tomorrow.
Evidences against the accused include DNA and polygraph tests, his own clothes, CCTV footage and the medical report. Additionally a list of 55 witnesses has also been submitted before the ATC.
Imran was also produced before the ATC today as his extended physical remand expired. Presenting arguments, Imran's counsel claimed his client is innocent, adding that people cannot be sent to jail just because Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif said so.
The defence counsel further said that DNA tests have no value in the eyes of the law, adding that there is no evidence against his client either.
Booked by the police for raping and killing eight minor girls, including seven-year-old Zainab, in Kasur, Imran was presented before the ATC on February 6 as well, a day before the expiry of his 14-day physical remand, amid high security.
Zainab was kidnapped from near her aunt’s house in Kasur on January 4. Her body was discovered in a garbage heap five days later.
On January 23, Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a news conference confirmed that Imran had murdered Zainab, referring to him as a “serial killer” alleging his role in the rape and murders of seven other girls in Kasur in recent years.
After the police arrested Imran, the suspect reportedly confessed to assaulting eight minor girls at an under-construction site and two others in a garbage heap. He also admitted to murdering five minor girls at an under-construction site and throwing away the bodies of three others in a garbage pile, sources said.
