Illegal detention: Police recover detained brick kiln workers from owner’s custody

The family was allegedly tortured, but head does not want to press further charges

RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi police on Sunday night recovered eight persons including a baby girl from Bhera in Sargodha district, where they were allegedly detained by a brick kiln owner over a monetary dispute, it has been learnt.

According to available information, Naseerabad police officials went to Bhera to recover   the wife, children, and other relatives of Ashfaq Ahmed, who had complained to the police that Chaudhry Zaheer, the owner of a brick kiln in Bajnial Village in Rawalpindi, had illegally detained his family.

The recovered people included Ashfaq’s wife Samina Bibi, his daughters Sanam and Zarina, his son Ehtasham, his cousin Mazhar Abbas, Mazhar’s wife Asiya Bibi, Mazhar’s daughter Safia Bibi, Mazhar’s son Fakhar Abbas, and Mazhar’s newborn daughter.

The police handed over the recovered persons to the complainant, who said he did not want legal action taken against the accused as he had gotten his family back, said a police official at Naseerabad Police Station.

The police official said there was a dispute between Chaudhry Zaheer and Ashfaq. Zaheer told the police that Ashfaq and his family worked at his kiln and owed him Rs400,000. He said that the workers however had not been able to pay back the money. The brick kiln owner further said that the workers had agreed to work off the debt at the kiln.

On the other hand, Advocate Ahsan Maqsood, representing Ashfaq, told The Express Tribune that they worked as labourers at the brick kiln. He said that when Ashfaq sought permission to send his children to a school set up by an NGO in a nearby village, the kiln owner got annoyed and tortured him.

He further alleged that the kiln owner detained his family after he ran for his life. Advocate Ahsan said that the police were not ready to register an abduction case against the kiln owner, and that they had to approach a sessions court against the police.

He said that following the court order, the police swept into action and recovered the family, which had been moved from Rawalpindi to Bhera by the kiln owner. He admitted that after the recovery of his family, Ashfaq was not interested in pressing any further charges.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 27^th, 2016.