Raymond Davis release: Interior Ministry told to reply by April 19

Sanaullah says families of deceased men most likely in Rawalpindi.

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court sought a reply from the Interior Ministry by April 19 regarding the whereabouts of the families of Faizan and Faheem, the two men who were killed by US national Raymond Davis.

Petitioner Advocate Malik Munsif Awan submitted that the families had been missing since they were paid diyat and Davis was pardoned on March 16. Yesterday, Assistant Advocate General Wali Muhammad Khan filed a written statement by Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan. According to the statement, both families were last reported to be at the court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Yousaf Aujila at Kot Lakhpat jail. The hearing over, they left the jail premises accompanied by their lawyer Raja Irshad, the statement read. Irshad took the families to Rawalpindi, Sanaullah’s statement said, adding that they were likely still there.

Khan referred to media reports that the families had accepted the diyat of their own free will and were free to live where they wanted. He requested the court to dismiss the petition.

To a court query, a deputy attorney general said that the Interior Ministry had sought two weeks to file its response. The court directed him to ensure that a reply was submitted by the next hearing.

The petitioner submitted that both families had gone missing after Davis’s release. He feared that they might have been kidnapped. He submitted that the families had a huge amount of money with them and their lives could be in danger.

The petitioner said he also feared that the families were forced to accept diyat. He requested the court to summon the authorities concerned and direct them to recover the families and present them before the court.

On a previous hearing, the Punjab government had expressed complete ignorance regarding the whereabouts of the families and suggested the court put that question to the federal government.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 13^th, 2011.