Doctor challenges Badin ‘police encounter’

BADIN: A fresh controversy has emerged over the alleged police encounter in Kadhan, Badin, in which a young man was killed.

Former police surgeon Dr Waqar Ahmed has challenged the police version of the incident. He claimed that the bullet wounds on the young man’s body suggested that he had been shot from a distance of around eight to 10 feet.

Police had maintained that the encounter was genuine and that the young man had been killed during an exchange of fire. However, Dr Waqar Ahmed disputed the claim and questioned the authenticity of the post-mortem examination.

Responding to questions about the police claim that the young man was killed by aerial firing, Dr Waqar said the post-mortem report stated that the bullets had passed through the victim’s body.

He said it was not possible for bullets fired into the air to cause such injuries. According to him, the nature of the wounds indicated that the shots had been fired from a distance of approximately eight to 10 feet.

Dr Waqar was also shown videos of the crime scene and the handing over of the body to the family. After reviewing the footage, he claimed that it appeared the young man had not undergone a proper post-mortem examination.

He said there were no visible signs of incisions on the body that would normally be made during a post-mortem. He suggested that the medico-legal officer may have prepared the report after examining only the upper portion of the body.

Dr Waqar also raised questions about the presence of a pistol in the victim’s hand. He said the footage appeared to give the impression that a pistol had been placed in the young man’s hand.

The victim’s family had earlier rejected the police account of the July 26 encounter and termed it a staged encounter. They had also demanded justice and called for the victim’s grave to be exhumed for a fresh examination.

The controversy is now before the Sindh High Court’s Hyderabad Circuit Bench. A hearing on the family’s petition against the alleged police encounter is scheduled for September 14.

The police have so far maintained that the encounter and post-mortem were genuine, while the allegations raised by the former police surgeon have added a new dimension to the case.