FAISALABAD: Ruling party MPA Tahir Jameel has moved the sessions court to demand extension in the physical remand of Sheraz Nawaz, a student who has been incarceratedin a theft case.

The student`s family insist they are being victimised at the behest of the parliamentarian.

Naveed Mukhtar, a lawyer of Sheraz, told Dawn that the MPA had submitted an application to Additional District and Sessions Judge Ali Raza and requested for more physical remand of Sheraz as the Mansoorabad magistrate had allowed only one-day physical remand of the accused and then sent him on judicial remand.

He said the MPA had submitted that police could get physical remand till 14 days but the accused was sent on judicial remand after one day though stolen items were yet to be recovered.

The court sought production of Nawaz before the area magistrate on Thursday, he added.

Sheraz, an MSc (hons) degree holder, was arrested by police on Aug 25 in connection with a theft case registered on the complaint of the MPA against unidentified people.

The medical report of Sheraz confirmed that police had subjected him to severe torture.

Advocate Mukhtar said the MPA had Sheraz arrested to get the video the young man made of the MPA trying to placate the girl who was under the influence. The girl hit the rear of the car of Sheraz`s father, he said. Upon demand of money for car repairs, he said the girl had called the MPA who was now trying to prove Sheraz a thief, he added.

The MPA says the shopkeepers of Kutchery Bazaar`s mobile market had told police that Sheraz had come to the market to sell his (MPA`s) phone.

He said police had registered a case after verifying the facts and got remand of Sheraz.

He said the family`s claim that a court bailif f had recovered Sheraz was wrong. The bailiff had checked the police station and found through official documents that Sheraz was on remand, he said.

Abu Bakar, brother of Sheraz, said the MPA managed registration of a fake case against his brother and police had subjected him to severe torture. `We are being threatened and asked to stop pursuing the case otherwise police will implicate all members of the family in cases of heinous crimes,` he said.

`Even after brutal torture police could not recover anything from Sheraz,` he said and alleged that police were not allowing them even to provide food to Sheraz.