' This order will dispose of Criminal Miscellaneous Nos.1431/B of 1994 and 1332/B of 1994, in which the petitioners seek bail in a case F.I.R. No,14, dated 22-7-1990 under sections 302, 307, 326, 109, 114, 148, 149 and 34, P.P.C. Registered at B.M.P. Post Barthi Tribal Area, D.G. Khan.
2. The petitioners, Ghulam Siddique and Atta Ullah, alongwith one Muhammad Akram, are accused of the murder of Muhammad Qasim and of inflicting injuries to Zafar Iqbal P.W. The occurrence took place at 1-30 p.m. On 22-7-1990 and was reported to the police at 3-30 p.m. On the same day by Niaz Ahmad, complainant. Succinctly, the prosecution case is that the complainant was present in his fields when he heard the rifle reports from the side of the bus-stand. He saw Ghulam Siddique and Ataullah petitioned armed with rifles and Muhammad Akram co-accused armed with gun, running towards their houses. He left for the scene of occurrence. In the meantime, Mir Hassan and Noor Khan son of Mir Khan informed the complainant that they boarded the bus which left for Theekar, Muhammad Qasim, Zafar Iqbal, Muhammad Khan and Saleem Shahwani also boarded the same bus; the accused persons were also travelling in the same bus. They demanded that the bus be taken to Theekar. On this the complainant told them that since they had picked up a quarrel, he could not go to that place and the complainant party stopped the bus. Muhammad Qasim, Zafar Iqbal and some other passengers in the meanwhile started leaving the bus. The accused persons resorted to indiscriminate firing hitting Muhammad Qasim and Zafar Iqbal.
Muhammad Qasim died on the spot whereas Zafar Iqbal was seriously injured.
3. The petitioners were being tried in the Court of the Deputy Commissioner, D.G. Khan under the Criminal Law (Special Provisions) Ordinance, 1968 but vide his order, dated 21-8-1990, the case was transferred to Punjab Special Court No, VII under the Suppression of Terrorist Activities Special Courts Act, 1975. An application was submitted by Ghulam Siddique and Ataullah petitioners and Muhammad Akram co-accused to the learned Special Judge for sending the file back for trial under the 1968 Ordinance but the learned Special Judge refused to transfer the same. The order of the Deputy Commissioner, by which he transferred the file of this case to the special Court was challenged in this Court in Writ Petition No,1329 of 1991, in which this Court suspended the proceedings in the trial Court.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submit that the petitioners were arrested on 22-7-1990 and since then, they have been in jail and that the petitioners cannot be kept in jail for an indefinite period.
5. Learned counsel for the State has opposed the bail application.
6. I have given due consideration to the arguments of learned counsel for the parties. There is no cavil to it that since the trial has already been stayed, there is no possibility that the trial will begin in the aforeseeable future. The order passed by my learned brother Ch. Fazal Karim, J. (as he then was) dated 10-11-1992 was, in no way, tantamount to refusing the bail to the petitioners for an indefinite period. Without expressing the opinion about the merits of the case, I think that the petitioners, in these circumstances, deserve the indulgence of the Court.
' In view of the above, the petitioners are allowed to be released on bail on their furnishing bail bonds in the sum of Rs,50,000 (Rupees fifty thousand only) each with one surety each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the trial Court.