Woman questions husband's 'detention by the police'

SHC bench orders police to stop harassing the petitioner.

KARACHI:

Uzma Jalal has filed a constitutional petition in the Sindh High Court, questioning the alleged illegal detention of her husband, Khizar Jamal who has been missing since December 12, 2010.

On Friday, the DIG Police (West), Sultan A Khowaja submitted a progress report listing efforts made to trace the missing man. The report said the search would continue to find or trace Jamal, and as soon as something came up, the court will be informed. The court was prayed to dispose of the petition.

However, the SHC bench noted that Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi, who heard the petition's previous proceedings on April 8, gave ten days "reluctantly and cautioned the police that if the man was not produced before the court, adverse action would be taken against them." But the police failed in finding the missing person in utter disregard of the court's orders to trace him, Justice Athar Saeed observed on Friday.

Meanwhile, advocate Abdul Waheed Katpar, the petitioner's counsel, complained that the police — instead of tracing the detainee — is harassing the family.

Police officials visit the family or summon them to record statements, although the police have already recorded them, he added.

The counsel said that if the petitioner or the family come to know of any information, they would voluntarily inform the police.

The counsel prayed the court to direct the police to not harass the petitioner and her family.

The bench ordered the DIG West to ask his subordinates to not visit or call the petitioner and her family. If anything substantial comes up and the meeting with the family becomes necessary, then the DIG himself would go to the petitioner's residence, the bench ordered.

It also noted that the Intelligence Bureau (IB) local chief has been made a respondent in the petition and hence, the Sindh home secretary should also come to court at the next hearing and give information about Khizar Jamal.

"If the home secretary is not present at the next hearing, this will be treated as violation of the court's order," the bench said, directing all officials to continue the search.

Another 'detention'

A woman moved the high court seeking recovery of her husband who was allegedly whisked away by law-enforcement agencies on February 12 this year.

A division bench of the Sindh High Court (SHC) comprising Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Shahid Anwar Bajwa heard on Friday a constitutional petition filed by Fatima, a mother of nine children.

The petitioner said her husband, Muhammad Ramzan, has been missing since he was picked up by some men in plain clothes. The men, pretending to be KESC officials, came to their house and called Ramzan out of his house on the pretext of checking the bill and the meter. Soon after, they disappeared along with Ramzan. The family was later told by a rag picker that men riding in a vehicle with a government number plate took him.

The petitioner said she informed the relevant authorities of the incident but nobody was able to trace his whereabouts. Ramzan was also allegedly picked up earlier in 2002 and in 2005.

The bench asked Deputy Attorney General (DAG) to obtain comments from all federal agencies.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 23^rd, 2011.