Muhammad Nawaz V. The State,
PLD 2021 Balochistan 87 · Balochistan High Court
This case concerns a police officer, Muhammad Nawaz, who was convicted for allegedly allowing a drug suspect to escape from police custody due to negligence while on duty. A First Information Report had been lodged after the suspect broke the lockup and fled during the night. Eight police employees were initially arrested; five were later released for lack of evidence, and two co-accused were acquitted by the trial court. Only Muhammad Nawaz was convicted and sentenced to one year's rigorous imprisonment plus a fine, a decision upheld on appeal before he brought this revision petition to the Balochistan High Court.
The High Court found the prosecution's case seriously flawed. None of the witnesses who saw events firsthand testified that Nawaz was actually in charge of guarding the lockup, and the prosecution never produced the duty register that would have proven who was responsible for security that night. His conviction rested mainly on an inquiry report, but the court held that such administrative findings are not binding on a criminal court, which requires actual evidence of negligence, not assumptions.
The court explained that to convict someone under this law, prosecutors must prove actual negligence causing the escape, not merely that the accused was on duty. Since real doubt existed about the case, and doubts must benefit the accused, the court acquitted Muhammad Nawaz. This judgment matters because it reinforces that criminal convictions require solid evidence and cannot rest on suspicion, presumption, or unproven administrative reports.
یہ مقدمہ ایک پولیس افسر محمد نواز سے متعلق ہے جسے ڈیوٹی کے دوران غفلت برتنے کے باعث ایک منشیات کے ملزم کو پولیس حراست سے فرار ہونے دینے کے الزام میں سزا سنائی گئی تھی۔ ملزم کے رات کے وقت لاک اپ توڑ کر فرار ہونے کے بعد ایک ابتدائی اطلاعی رپورٹ درج کی گئی تھی۔ ابتدائی طور پر آٹھ پولیس ملازمین کو گرفتار کیا گیا تھا، جن میں سے پانچ کو بعد ازاں ناکافی شواہد کی بنا پر رہا کر دیا گیا، جبکہ دو دیگر ملزمان کو ٹرائل کورٹ نے بری کر دیا۔ صرف محمد نواز کو مجرم قرار دیتے ہوئے ایک سال قید بامشقت اور جرمانے کی سزا سنائی گئی، جسے اپیل میں برقرار رکھا گیا، جس کے بعد انہوں نے بلوچستان ہائی کورٹ میں یہ نظرثانی درخواست دائر کی۔
ہائی کورٹ نے پایا کہ استغاثہ کا مقدمہ سنگین خامیوں کا حامل تھا۔ کسی بھی عینی شاہد نے یہ گواہی نہیں دی کہ نواز فی الواقع لاک اپ کی نگرانی کے ذم