Natasha Danish Iqbal: Backlash on Karachi police for hit-and-run

KARACHI: Karachi police is facing huge backlash by the public after Natasha Danish Iqbal, the primary suspect in a deadly hit-and-run case, was not brought before the court.

Natasha Danish Iqbal is the wife of businessman Danish Iqbal. She was reported by her attorney to be “mentally unfit”, based on a psychiatric assessment.

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The accident on Monday involved Iqbal’s Toyota Land Cruiser colliding with a motorcycle, resulting in the deaths of a female student and her father, and injuring five others.

The widely circulated CCTV footage of the incident has led to allegations of preferential treatment for the wealthy suspect.

Natasha Iqbal is identified as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Metro Capital Limited and JSDN Electric Limited, both part of her husband’s Metro Power Group. The social media backlash has focused on accusations of favouritism due to her affluent background.

After her arrest, Iqbal was examined at Jinnah Hospital to check for drug influence, before being transferred to the psychiatric ward for further evaluation.

Her lawyer presented a court report stating Iqbal was “confused and not in a stable mental state,” and had been receiving psychiatric treatment for five years.

There have been claims of a cover-up, with allegations that Iqbal’s blood and urine samples were not analysed promptly, potentially affecting the results.

Conflicting statements from officials about the handling of the case received huge backlash.

The Senior Superintendent of Police Aleena Rajpar attributed the delay to a public holiday, while Karachi Police Chief stated that the hospital was responsible for sample submission.

Meanwhile, the police surgeon who collected the samples confirmed that they were collected and given to the investigation officer.

The case has drawn significant public attention, especially given Natasha Iqbal’s role as a director in multiple companies and her connections to Karachi’s business elite.

Despite facing serious charges, including causing death by negligence, Iqbal was granted a one-day physical remand by the court.

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The investigation is currently ongoing as authorities face growing concerns about potential bias from an enraged public.