PESHAWAR: A local antiterrorism court on Monday granted bail to Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) MPA Sultan Mohammad Khan and his three bodyguards in a case about the alleged forced entry to a police station and the manhandling of the station house officer.

Judge Syed Asghar Ali Shah directed the accused to submit personal surety bond for his release.The MPA and his bodyguards were sent to prison a day ago and were produced before the court early Monday.

The judge sought the report of the investigation officer and questioned how sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 were included in the FIR as the said offence did not fall under the said sections.

Later in the day, the investigation officer informed the court that Section 7 of the ATA had been withdrawn from the FIR.

However, the judge observed that as he had already taken cognisance of the case, he would decide about the bail plea of the suspects.

SHO of Chassid Police Station Ijaz Khan alleged that the MPA had forcibly entered the police station to get five people detained for the illegal firing of gunshots in the air in Amirabad village of Rajar.

He alleged that the MPA hurled abuses at him besides manhandling him and that his bodyguards had aimed guns at him.

Khawaja Aurangzeb Alamgir and Nisar Khan, lawyers for the MPA, said police had registered a concocted case against his client and that was evident from the conflicting statements of policemen deployed at the police station in question.

They said the MPA was a public office-holder and if he intended to get anyone`s release freed forcibly, he would have taken along with him several people and would not have gone there only with his bodyguards.

`MOLESTER` DENIED BAIL: The Peshawar High Court on Monday dismissed bail petition of a man charged with kidnapping and sexually abusing a teenage boy over a month ago in Nowshera district.

Justice Qaiser Rasheed of a single-member bench observed that in view of the nature of the offence and the evidence on record, the petitioner did not deserve to be set free on bail.

The petitioner was arrested along with co-accused on the complaint of the 17-yearold alleged abuse victim that the two had taken him away by force before sexually abusing him.

FM Sabir, lawyer for the state, said the complainant`s medical examination and other evidence on record confirmed the sexual abuse.

However, the lawyer for the petitioner said his client didn`t commit the offence and was falsely charged for it due to a dispute with the complainant`s family.

Also, the same bench granted bail to a man charged with killing his wife.

The prosecution had alleged that petitioner Asghar Ali had killed wife Nighat over a domestic dispute by firing gunshots.