Court issues notices to top Punjab officials

LAHORE: The Special Central Court has issued show cause notices to IG Punjab Police, IG Prisons and Home Secretary and attached their salaries for not producing former Punjab chief minister Pervaiz Elahi in the money laundering case.

The court has also imposed a fine of Rs50,000 on each, said an official. Judge Bakht Fakhar Behzad of the Special Central Court took strict notice for not producing Elahi despite the court order and a given deadline.

The court had summoned Elahi but he was not produced. On this, the court gave a deadline of 3pm. But the officials didn’t produce Elahi before the court. After this, the court issued orders of action against both the IGs and the secretary Home Department. The court directed authorities to produce Elahi on August 5.

In a five-page judgment, the judge directed the Accountant-General to collect the penalty amount from the salaries of officers and keep the salaries of the three officers suspended until the court orders are implemented.

The court remarked that this incident may happen again tomorrow when the freedom of the person is taken away by the police. “This incident shows the indifference of the state which does not act on such incidents.” The judgment further said that any accused cannot be deprived of his legal and fundamental rights. The court inquired as to how the state could remain oblivious to the continuous detention of a prisoner without bringing him to court. It is also to be seen how the detention of Pervaiz Elahi can be justified. The current situation requires that strict action be taken against those responsible, the order concluded.