A court on Tuesday ordered the Interior Ministry to issue red warrants for five absconders involved in a case of attempted murder of President Asif Ali Zardari during his detention in May 1999.Additional District Judge Irfan Siddiqui also ordered to confiscate the property of former National Accountability Bureau chief Saifur Rehman Khan, his brother Mujibur Rehman, former police inspector general Rana Maqbool Ahmad and then jail superintendent Najaf Mirza.
The court declared the accused as proclaimed offenders under sections 87 and 88 of the Criminal Procedure Code, and ordered the ministry to contact Interpol for the absconders' arrest, after a senior investigator informed the court he had been unable to serve non-bailable warrants (NBWs) to them because they were abroad.
According to prosecution, the accused took Zardari from judicial custody to interrogate him over the murder of Justice (r) Nizam Ahmed and his advocate Nadeem Ahmed in 1995.
During the interrogation, Zardari's tongue was found slashed. Investigators alleged that Zardari had tried to commit suicide, while Zardari accused police of torture and giving him death threats.
Zardari filed a complaint of attempted murder against the accused after an inquiry found that his charges against were right.
The hearing was postponed until October 25.