Three years of Mudassar Naru’s disappearance: Farhatullah Babar slams government for showing apathy

ISLAMABAD: Secretary General Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarians Farhatullah Babar has expressed grave concern over the long disappearance of journalist-cum-writer and activist Mudasar Naru. He slammed the callous attitude of the incumbent government for failing to recover him after three years of his disappearance.

Speaking at the protest in front of the National Press Club in Islamabad on Friday, Babar said, “Journalist Mudassar disappeared on this day three years ago and a few months ago, his artist wife Sadaf Chughtai also passed away as she succumbed to adverse circumstances.” The disappearance of Mudassar Naru should have been a matter of serious concern primarily for state institutions other than his family, civil society and the literary community.

He maintained, “The law enforcement agencies not only refused to trace his whereabouts but also delayed to register an FIR for over three months.” He lamented that there has been no progress in the case after two years since the commission on enforced disappearances took notice of the case, adding, “The silence and apathy of state institutions highlight the impunity of the crime of enforced disappearances in the country.”

He warned that if corrective measures were not taken urgently, the international community might be forced to take notice of the crime, adding, “Like FATF it can become another albatross around the neck.”

He expressed dismay that neither the parliament, nor judiciary or civilian government was able to do anything about it.He asserted that chairman Disappearances Commission had admitted before the Senate Committee on Human Rights in August 2018 that 153 security personnel were involved in the act and demanded that their names be made public and action be taken against them.