KARACHI: A judicial magistrate issued a nonbailable warrant (NBW) for arrest of former SSPSouth Imran Qureshi on Tuesday and rejected an investigation officer`s request to dispose of as `C Class` a case pertaining to a robbery during a raid on the house of a trader in Orangi Town.

The IO, DSP (east) Syed Balaghat Hussain Shah, submitted the final charge sheet before Judicial Magistrate (west) Muhammad Bilal, in which he asked the court to dispose of the case in class `C` on the ground that the complainant, trader Shakir Khan, had filed an affidavit to withdraw the case because he no longer wanted to pursue any legal action againstthe suspects.

The IO suggested departmental action against the SSP-South and DSP Umair Tariq Bajari for lapses and violation of SOPs under relevant rules.

However, the court rejected the IO`s legal opinion presented in the challan and dismissed the plea to downgrade the case to C Class.

`After examining the investigation report, sufficient evidence is available against the suspects, therefore, the court taking cognizance, and the matter is being sent to sessions court for trial,` the order said.

Furthermore, the investigation report filed by the IO under Section 173 of the criminal procedure code is being treated as a charge sheet and IO is directed to submit a list of witnesses within seven days.

The court noted that the closure of a case could not be solely based on the opinion of the investigation officer, citing a Supreme Court judgment to support its decision.

Earlier, on the Sindh High Court order on Dec 27, IO DSP Kamal Naseem was replaced by DSP Balaghat.

In his interim investigation report, DSP Naseem chargesheeted DSP Umair and 16 other policemen and private persons for dacoity, abduction, house trespass and wrongful confinement on the night between Nov 18 and 19 and looting over Rs20 million, jewellery and other valuables.

The IO also placed the then SSP-South Qureshi and constable Azmatullah in column two of the charge sheet with a blue link for what he claimed lack of evidence.

In the scrutiny note written on the investigation officer`s report, the district public prosecutor claimed that DSP Bajari had `no nexus` with the robbery at the trader`s house.