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       KARACHI: A sessions court on Friday sent four TikTokers to prison on judicial remand after it set aside a magistrate’s order that had earlier extended their police remand in a case pertaining to the looting of over Rs130 million cash, mobile phones, and expensive watches at gunpoint from a house in PECHS.

       The direction came as the additional district and sessions judge (East) took up an application against the impugned order of the judicial magistrate, who had extended the physical remand of the four suspects — model and actor Yusra Zaib Khan, Nimra Shah, Shahroz, and Shahriyar — and handed them over to the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) for further interrogation.

       After hearing arguments from the prosecution and defence counsel Waqar Alam Abbasi, the court allowed the application and set aside the magistrate’s earlier order.

       The court sent the four suspects to prison on judicial remand and directed the SSP East to conduct an inquiry into allegations of maltreatment of the suspects during police custody.

       Court sends four PECHS robbery suspects to prison on judicial remand

       The court further instructed the SSP to submit a compliance report before the concerned trial court for necessary action.

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       Regarding the medical examination report submitted by the investigating officer on the suspects’ allegations of maltreatment, the court noted that the Medico-Legal Certificate (MLC) prima facie supported the claims of physical injuries during police custody.

       It observed that the report revealed that Nimra had sustained multiple injuries, which were found to be four to five days old — a period during which she remained in police custody — and the IO failed to furnish any convincing explanation regarding the cause of the injuries.

       “Besides medical record, one may not lose sight of the fact that police have already availed police custody remand of accused for seven days which is considerable period. MLCs have casted heavy doubt upon the safe custody of accused persons,” the court remarked.

       However, the court allowed the IO to interrogate the suspects within the jail premises, in accordance with the law and subject to the meeting procedural formalities.

       It observed that in the absence of any compelling justification for further police custody, and the substantiated allegations of maltreatment, the continuation of physical remand appeared neither lawful nor in the interest of justice.

       Earlier, defence counsel Abbasi filed a plea against the impugned order, contending that the trial court had “miserably failed to apply its judicial mind” while passing the order.

       He submitted that the applicants had been arrested and the police had obtained their initial remand; however, despite the suspects informing the judicial magistrate about alleged maltreatment at the hands of the police, the trial court had extended their physical remand for four more days.

       Published in Dawn, July 5th, 2025