Peshawar: Pakistani authorities will
soon decide whether the trial of Sufi Muhammad, the chief of
the banned Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariah Muhammadi, will be held in
prison for security reasons, a provincial minister said on Monday.
Khyber-Pakthunkhwa Law Minister Arshad Abdullah said
the trial of rebel cleric Sufi Muhammad could be held in jail.
A final decision in this regard will be made by the
provincial Home Department, he said.
Sufi Muhammad, who was arrested last year during an
anti-Taliban drive, is facing charges of instigating people
against the government in Swat district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
province.
He is currently being held in a prison in Peshawar.
The cleric was not produced in a court in Swat during
the last hearing of the case against him on June 29 due to
poor health.
Officials have said security risks are involved in
taking him from Peshawar to Swat for the trial.
There is no harm in holding Sufi Muhammad`s trial in
jail due to the security situation, Arshad said.
PTI
