PESHAWAR: A local antiterrorism court on Monday acquitted an Afghan national in a terrorist attack case but awarded him seven years imprisonment and Rs10,000 fine for illegal stay in Pakistan.

Judge Syed Asghar Ali Shah pronounced that the prosecution failed to prove the charge against Hamid Khan of hurling a hand grenade at a private guest house used by an international humanitarian organisation.

He, however, observed the accused didn`t provide any valid documents to prove that his stay in Pakistan was legal. The judge ruled that the convict be deported to Afghanistan after completion of prison term.

In the case, an unidentifled person had hurled a hand grenade on the premises in the use of Medicines Sans Frontier (MSF) here on Chinar Road at posh University Town locality on Nov 4, 2013. The watchman of the premises, Ameer Siab, was complainant in the case.

The FIR was registered under section 7 of the Anti Terrorism Act, sections 3 and 4 of Explosive Substance Act and section 14 of the Foreigners Act.

The defence counsel said the accused was falsely implicated in the case and there was no evidence against him.

He said the accused had studied at a local Afghan school named Jamaulddin Afghani school and had passed his intermediate examination.

The lawyer said the petitioner had been serving as waiter at a local restaurant.

He pointed out that the accused had gone missing onNov 5 and his family members had lodged report with the local police, however, after few days the police made public his arrest on Nov 12 in connection with the occurrence. The lawyer said the watchman was complainant in the case and even he had not identified him after his arrest.

He said local police had traced the suspect through a phone call and that some terrorists had been training the suspect for carrying out attacks on the offices of NGOs.

PA SUMMONED: A twomember bench of the Peshawar High Court on Monday summoned the political agent of Kurram Agency in a case regarding the alleged detention of 19 members of a jirga by the administration under the Frontier Crimes Regulation.

Justice Qaiser Rasheed and Justice Ikramullah Khan fixed for Feb 27 the hearing into the petition of Haji Shakir Hussain and other detained jirga members directing the political agent to appear before them and explain position on the matter.

Imad Anjum Durrani and Hussain Mangal, lawyers for the petitioners, said the detainees were permanent residents of Kurram Agency and were tribal notables.

They said on the night between Jan 18 and 19 the administration asked them to attend a jirga on a local issue at Governor`s House in Parachinar.

The lawyers said as the jirga members could not reach any conclusion, the administration got annoyed with them and they were arrested and sent to Bannu prison under Section 40 of the FCR.

They added that detention of their clients was illegal and unconstitutional.