Home dept, Sindh IGP, others put on notice in detention cases

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has issued notices to the federal and provincial law officers, home department, Sindh inspector general of police (IGP) and others on petitions against illegal detention of citizens allegedly by the personnel of law enforcement agencies (LEAs).

Petitioners Safia Qureshi, Sabika Sheikh and Naseem Nasir submitted in their pleas that police and personnel of LEAs took Syed Mehboob Zafar, Faheem Khan and Mohammad Nasir from Gulistan-e-Jauhar, North Nazimabad and FB Area respectively during raids and their whereabouts were unknown since then.

They submitted that police and LEAs neither did produce the missing persons before any court of the law nor were details of their cases given to their family members. They sought production of the detainees before the high court and also requested the SHC to direct the police and other respondents to provide details of cases if any against them.

The court issued notices to the provincial and federal law officers, home department, IGP and concerned police stations and directed them to file comments on the petitions.

Plea disposed of

The SHC disposed of a petition against the detention of a proscribed organisation activist, who was recently released in Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC) car bombing case, after the high court was informed that he had now been detained for further three months under the anti-terrorism law.

Aziza Naeem challenged the detention of her son-in-law Abdul Hameed Bugti under MPO for 90 days. The petitioner submitted that her son-in-law was incarcerated in prison for his involvement in the PIDC car bombing case for the last 14 years and he was exonerated by the SHC on April 9 due to lack of evidence.

She submitted that the prison authorities had refused to release the detainee and detained him under the MPO.

The home secretary filed a report mentioning that the representation of the detainee, who had an affiliation with the Balochistan Liberation Army, was dismissed on May 14 as he was apprehended by the law enforcement agencies because if he was not detained under the MPO, he was likely to pose grave threat to the public safety and cause breach of peace and tranquility.

The Sindh advocate general informed the high court that the petition has been infructuous as the detainee has been detained under the Anti-Terrorism Act for further three months.

A counsel for the petitioner submitted that he wanted to withdraw the petition and would file a fresh petition to assail the detention notification. The court granted the request for withdrawal and disposed of the petition.