Court restrains authorities from arresting CM’s aide

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday restored the transit bail petition of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Advisor for Information Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif and restrained authorities from arresting him.

The court also approved a supplementary application and issued a notice to the federal government and sought details of the cases filed against him.During the hearing, Justice SM Attique Shah remarked that the future of youth in the province seemed bleak.

He observed that the situation in Kurram was deteriorating, but the condition in Peshawar was also far from ideal. “People cannot go outside the city at night and drug smuggling has become rampant in the province. The government must take measures to curb drug trafficking,” he remarked.

The case was heard by a two-member bench comprising Justice SM Attique Shah and Justice Faheem Wali. Advocate Alam Khan Adeenzai appeared for the petitioner Barrister Saif.He informed the court that the supplementary application was filed to restore a previously dismissed petition.

The counsel explained that the petitioner could not appear at the previous hearing due to his engagement in a jirga in Kurram, which led to the dismissal of the petition.Justice Attique Shah responded that the petitioner’s presence was not necessary and that the counsel should have appeared instead. He assured the counsel that the court would restore the petition.

Addressing Barrister Saif, Justice Attique Shah remarked, “You are a son of this land. While the situation in Kurram is bad, Peshawar is not in good condition either. People cannot go a kilometer outside Peshawar city at night. Drug smuggling is widespread in the province. Take steps to address this issue and control the situation.”

The court urged him to take initiatives for the youth, observing that their future seemed bleak. “The world is moving towards IT, but our youth are becoming addicted to drugs. Do something for them, provide them with vocational training,” the court observed.

In response, Barrister Saif informed the court that measures were being taken to promote online businesses and provide skills training to the youth, although this would take some time.The court reinstated Barrister Saif’s transit bail application and directed the authorities not to arrest him in pending cases. The court also issued a notice to the federal government to provide details of the cases filed against him.