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ISLAMABAD: A serving Army officer beat black and blue an award-winning music director, Sohail Javed, on Wednesday night in Lahore Cantt after a row which started after the officer’s son hit the car driven by Sohail’s wife with his bike. It is another example that in Pakistan Army officers are always above law and use their powers to capture land and terrorize civilians.

While Colonel Nadeem thrashed Sohail, the officer’s wife beat Sohail’s wife. Sohail has recently shifted from Karachi to Lahore and resides in Askari 10, a garrison housing society that affluent people generally prefer to live in considering it a better place on security grounds.

Incidentally, while he was brutalised by an Army officer, he was also denied justice from the housing society administrator and then the police. “I am a serving officer and I will not spare you now or in the days to come and when ever and where ever I will see your family I will beat the hell out of you guys if need to be I will make sure you don’t live in Askari 10 in peace”, Col Nadeem roared as he beat Sohail in the office of Askari 10’s administrator. The administration officer, Major (retd) Ameer Bahadar didn’t intervene as Sohail and family was being beaten in the office. Instead he later told the family to report FIR and he couldn’t be any help as there is a serving officer involved. Askari 10’s administer, Maj (R) Ameer Bahadar, refused to talk with The News when contacted for his version. “It was dispute between the two parties. You go and talk with them, not me,” he said.

The North Cantt Police Station didn’t register the FIR either, telling the family that the police can’t afford creating mess with the army officer. Sohail who spoke to The News on this issue, has mentioned all these details in an application now sent to the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, and the copies have also been sent to the chief of the army staff, Punjab chief minister and DG Housing GHQ.

Sohail, who survived cancer and have already gone through two major chest surgeries, said that Colonel Nadeem didn’t listen to them and instead kept saying “how dare you touch my son. I am serving officer and I will not spare you now or in the days to come and when ever and where ever I will see your family I will beat the hell out of you guys if need to be I will make sure you don’t live in Askari 10 in peace”. This clearly shows that “the colonel knows that he is above the law.”

The first thrashing incident occurred around 9pm Wednesday when Sohail’s wife, Asma, and son were heading to the Askari Market for buying grocery. “Three boys improperly riding a motorcycle came and intentionally hit the car from behind and broke the back light of our car causing minor dents,” said the application. As Asma reprimanded the hitters for being careless, they hurled abuses at her, provoking her 15-year son to come for the mother’s rescue.

The boy driving the bike threatened with serious consequences as, according to Sohail, the guy said: “his dad is a colonel and he will fix my wife and her family.” “Once the things started getting out of hand my wife called me to the scene,” Sohail explains. “On reaching there I saw my wife and son surrounded by a mob and I could see them in trouble, I pushed a few boys away and secured my family, in that process I slapped a boy,” Sohail explains.

“Colonel Nadeem’s wife showed up at the scene later on and yet again the scene got wild as the lady did not try to diffuse the situation,” he further notes in the complaint sent to the Chief Justice of Pakistan.

All this while, Sohail narrates, I kept requesting that I need to just speak to Colonel Nadeem whose son was riding the bike and no one else but nobody gave his information.

As Sohail and family returned home, the colonel’s son allegedly came to Sohail’s house along with friends delivering threats of dire consequences. “A few hours later another party came to our house in three cars with people appearing to be gundas and gave threats and abused along with army officers and the families of the boys who were riding the bike.” “I was slapped repeatedly in front of my house,” Sohail explains, adding that “this also amounts as infringement or our liberty, me and my family could not move or get out of the house”.

“Once the complaint was sent to the Askari admin office we were asked to meet the security admin at the Askari 10’s administration officer Mr Major Ameer’s office at 9am, July 28, 2011 to resolve the matter and come to a peaceful conclusion.”

“On July 28, 2011 at 9 am when we went to the Askari admin office the above mentioned major was not present at the scene and the above mentioned colonel with a group of 20 people including his wife was present at the scene and assaulted me and my wife as soon as they saw us and started kicking and beating us and dragged us on the road and kept abusing us in most foul words.”

Major Ameer after the incident came over to my house, Sohail goes on, and asked me to come with him to the spot where the car accident happened and see if there was any security camera footage available, as no camera were mounted in that direction no footage or evidence could be found.

“I am a survivor of cancer and have gone through two major chest surgeries hence any kind of pushing around or rough handling is a serious danger to my health. My wife and I tried to explain this to the colonel and that we only want to talk it out so this is over. But he did not listen to us and kept saying how dare you touch the son of Colonel Nadeem I am serving officer and I will not spare you now or in the days to come.”

“In order to save myself and my wife I had to run to the other office of Major Ameer and requested him to help us. In return we were told Askari admin cannot do any thing about this incident and we should report our issue to the police and take it up with them.”

“Before we could report a complaint, strangely a complaint was filed against us, alleging the injuries those boys got were because of us, which is completely untrue,” he writes in the application sent to the chief justice.

After an entire day of waiting and going through the proper channel of reporting a complaint and medical check up “we were told that our FIR cannot be reported, no action will be taken on our complaint as “they cannot mess with an army colonel and I am not hurt enough and no blood or broken bone to take this case any further.”

“Dear Sir we here by request that this matter should be taken up most urgently with a proper investigation further. How can honourable army officials who are also known as the defenders or our nation can beat and humiliate civilians and their families.”

“It is therefore respectfully prayed that for grievances of the applicant and appropriate action may kindly be ordered and the culprit may kindly be penalized with in accordance with law that is under the Pakistan penal courts and relevant law there too, it is further prayed that the security to the life and liberty of our family may kindly be insured by the local police,” said the application.

Source: http://www.thenews.com.pk/