- Parties sign compromise, plaintiffs say no objection to acquittal.
- Suspects “Salman, Usman Yasin provided compensation” to heirs.
- Lahore court orders suspects to submit Rs50,000 surety bonds.
A local court in Lahore on Monday granted bail to five suspects in a case related to the Lahore manhole tragedy after the complainants forgave them and decided not to pursue any legal action.
The case was registered after a mother and her daughter fell into a sewer line in Lahore’s Bhati Gate area and lost their lives last month, prompting police to arrest several individuals over alleged negligence.
The deceased woman was identified as Sadia, and the infant was 10-month-old Rida Fatima.
Judicial Magistrate Shafqat Abbas heard the case where a complainant told the district court that they pardoned the suspects “in the name of Allah” as suspects Salman Yasin and Usman Yasin had made compensation.
The victims’ heirs further informed the court that they have signed a written compromise and had no objection to the acquittal or discharge of the suspects.
The judicial magistrate accepted the compromise and ordered the release of the suspects on bail after the submission of surety bonds of Rs50,000 each.
On January 31, the court had approved a four-day physical remand for the five suspects, including a project manager of a company working on the Data Darbar extension project. Police had initially sought a 14-day remand for questioning.
The counsel, representing the project director, had told the court that the incident was tragic, asserting that his clients were not directly involved. He had added that the company provided a Rs10 million cheque to the victims’ family as compensation.
