Missing persons: SHC directs federal govt to submit reports from internment centers

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday directed secretaries of ministries of interior and defence to seek reports from internment centers and produce them before the court.

Hearing petitions against the disappearance of citizens, a division bench of the SHC, headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto, observed that reports from internment centers as well as police from other provinces had not been filed yet despite the court orders.

The investigation officer submitted that the Ministry of Defence had been movedto check interment centers all over the country, including KPK, regarding detention of missing persons. However, the response is awaited. The court observed that replies of interior and defence ministries have not been filed yet with regard to detention of missing persons in internment centers.

The court directed the secretaries of the ministries of defence and interior to collect reports from the internment centers with regard to the presence of missing persons and produce the reports before the court by the next date of hearing or appropriate orders shall be passed. The court directed the home secretary and concerned officers to repeat the sessions of joint investigation team and the provincial task force and submit compliance reports on the next date of hearing.

In another missing person case, the court inquired from the additional IGP Karachi to appraise the court as what efforts were being made to ascertain the whereabouts of missing persons who were allegedly detained by personnel of the law enforcement agencies.

The AIG Karachi submitted that the police were making efforts for the recovery of missing persons by using modern techniques. The court directed the investigation officers to submit the progress reports in each missing persons case.