Dr Asim case: SHC issues notices to police, Rangers chiefs on plea seeking fair trial

Bench directs law officers, representing the police, paramilitary force, to file comments by Oct 27

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) issued on Friday notices to the provincial chief of the police and director-general of the Rangers on a petition challenging the arrest of former petroleum minister Dr Asim Hussain under the Anti-Terrorism Act and seeking an impartial inquiry into cases of corruption and terrorists' harbouring against him.

Headed by the SHC Chief Justice Ahmed Ali M Sheikh, a two-judge bench directed the law officers, representing the police and paramilitary force, to file comments on behalf of their chiefs by October 27.



Dr Aijaz Fatima, Dr Asim's mother, had filed a petition in November, 2015 against the arrest of her son under the anti-terrorism law and sought direction for the law enforcers to conduct an impartial inquiry.

On the last hearing, the judges had directed the petitioner's lawyer, Anwar Mansoor Khan, to argue on the petition, which seemed to have become infructuous since Dr Asim had been released on bail.

On Friday, Advocate Khan argued that Dr Asim was tortured and forced to make a statement in custody of the Rangers, who had taken him into detention for 90 days. He further alleged that Dr Asim was presented as a terrorist, adding that Dr Asim was forced to give statements before the so-called joint investigation team.



SHC CJ Sheikh inquired what the purpose was of the petition now, since a considerable period of time had passed and the petition had become infructuous.

Advocate Khan said the hearing was not conducted on the petition during Dr Asim's detention, adding it could be done now as the plea was still not infructuous because the Rangers had kept the petitioner's son in unlawful detention.

He said the petitioner had sought for a free trial through this petition, but this might not be done since statements were obtained from the petitioner's son under duress in detention.



After hearing arguments from the petitioner's lawyer, the bench issued notices to the police inspector-general, Rangers director-general and other respondents for October 27.

Case history

Dr Fatima had moved the court, apprehending that the Rangers might influence the then ongoing inquiries initiated by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and police against her son in cases of corruption and harbouring terrorists respectively.

In the plea, Dr Asim's mother had maintained that the Rangers had denied her son the opportunity to meet his family and lawyer during his 90-day detention. She had also alleged that her son was kept in a dungeon without any light or electricity so as to torture him and extract a false statement out of him.

Dr Fatima had recalled that the SHC's then administrative judge for anti-terrorism courts, Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto, had admitted on November 30 an application by NAB, allowing them to interrogate her son for corruption while he was in the custody of police.



It was pointed out that despite the transfer of Dr Asim's custody to the police, a large number of paramilitary soldiers, who were also complainants in the case against the former minister, were deployed at the police station.

The petitioner had apprehended that in the Rangers' presence, an independent investigation could not be done by the police. Therefore, she pleaded to the court to issue directives to the authorities concerned to ensure an impartial probe into the allegations levelled against Dr Asim.