Ismail Malik Awaits Justice

Ismail Malik Awaits Justice
By Pulse November 01, 2007


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Even after a year has passed when senior journalist Ismail Malik was murdered in Islamabad, the Federal Police have failed to arrest the murderers. Since then the journalist community has been protesting against the Police failure and negligence but to little vain.
Ismail Malik, Resident Editor of Pakistan Press International (PPI) news agency, was brutally murdered outside a scavenger’s tent in the bushy area close to Super Market at midnight, October 31-November 1. According to already published reports, Ismail attended a Turkish Reception on the 31st night, returned to his office located in Super Market, and then, at around, 9:30 pm, went out for walk—never to return again. He lived alone in the office premises; so, nobody went out at night to look for him.
It was only on November 1st morning that the scavenger, according to Police information, found Ismail dead outside his tent inside the bushes. The disclosure was made public at around 8:30 am—the news spread like wild fire in the twin cities. The Police sent the corpse for post-mortem at Islamabad’s main government hospital—Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences—where scores of journalists, police and government officials later gathered for further information regarding the murder and to express their collective horror on the unfortunate incident.

A Brutal Murder

The brutal manner in which Ismail was murdered was enough to shock, enrage and even scare his fellow journalists. Those who have seen Ismail’s dead body say that his skull was virtually crushed with an iron rod, or a heavy stone. It was not just one mortal hit on the head; instead, the extent of the damage on the skull was such that the killer appeared to have continued to mutilate Ismail’s head even after his death.
Since Ismail’s murder, fellow journalists have been wondering why he was murdered. Ismail Malik was a very humble, harmless and honest person. He never had any enmity, personal or family, with anyone. Ismail Malik was a very jolly man, always trying to amuse his colleagues—who have known him for over two decades in the profession of journalism. How could such a person be murdered so brutally?
Sad and shocked, hundreds of journalists from Rawalpindi and Islamabad gathered outside the offices of Dawn at Zero Point by evening of the same day Ismail was murdered, and offered Namaz-e-Janaza. The Police officials had also by then declared that their efforts to nab the murder(s) of Ismail were already in full gear.
The same day, a delegation of the Press Club met Interior Secretary Syed Kemal Shah, who assured the delegates that a joint team of the Federal Police and FIA had started to investigate the case, and that the culprits would be nabbed “soon.” Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz also directed the Police and FIA to settle the case on an urgent basis.
The investigations conducted by the FIA revealed that the murder actually took place near the scavenger’s tent located in the bushy area close to Super Market. It was the 18 years old scavenger, Muhammad Shafiq, who first informed the Police that a dead body was lying in front of his tent. The Police arrested the scavenger.

Illegal Venture

Interestingly, FIA sources also reveal that during investigations Muhammad Shafiq confessed to running an illegal venture, selling drugs and alcohol, and, for that, he was bribing both CDA and Police officials. He also confessed to giving a monthly amount of Rs10,000 to various police officials at the Kohsar Police Station, whose names he disclosed to the FIA investigating team. The FIA team also discovered some empty bottles of alcohol from the tent.
The accused, Muhammad Shafiq, also told the investigating team that he had never seen Ismail Malik visiting the area around his tent; and that, each day, after finishing the work, he left the tent at 4 pm. He said when he came back to the tent on November 1st morning, he saw the dead body and informed the Police immediately. At one point, the Police claimed they had discovered the weapon, which was used to murder the journalist.
With the help of Police and FIA sources, and through its own investigations, Weekly Pulse was able to establish that the scavenger’s tent was an illegal outfit in the middle of the bushes near Super Market, and that in its guise, a dirty drug and alcohol selling venture was in operation. These investigations also indicated that the place had become a den of criminals that was set up at an illegal business spot, and that, without police protection or bribing CDA officials, it could not have existed.

CDA and Police Involvement

It is no surprise, therefore, that as soon as the accused Muhammad Shafiq confessed to the criminal activity taking place at his tent, especially the involvement of CDA and Police officials, some vested interests started to spread false propaganda regarding the case, especially defaming the personality of the late journalist. Such malicious attempts by vested interests, including Police officials, angered the journalist community in Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
The Police also claimed they had arrested those responsible for the murder. However, when the journalists got in touch with the head of the Police Investigation Team, Superintendent of Police (SP) Ishfaq Ahmad then, he denied having arrested anyone. According to him, the investigations into the murder case were still going on. The SHO of Kohsar Police Station, Khuda Satti, also denied having arrested anyone.
Some CDA officials, requesting anonymity, then suspected that some hidden hands may be trying to cover up the case. Sources in the FIA also didn’t rule out the possibility of such hands attempting to complicate the matter, by shifting the focus of investigation towards a wrong direction.
The FIA proceeded with its own investigations. A blame game began within the CDA then when the DMA Section of the Authority blamed its Enforcement Directorate for allowing an illegal scavenger’s tent to operate in the bushy area of the Federal Capital’s F-6 Sector. The DMA had stopped issuing licenses for such tents in 1992, and only street hawkers were allowed to operate such businesses.

Terrorizing Impact

As for the journalistic community in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, its level of frustration is growing with each passing day. In the absence of speedy outcome of the case—especially vis-à-vis the varied mysteries revolving the circumstances in which the murder took place and the motives of the culprits—journalistic frustration can turn into an outpour of anger. The same may have a growing terrorizing impact on the journalistic community.