IHC bars police from harassing PTI workers

Court moved to declare custodial violence illegal

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday restrained the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) police from harassing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders and workers ahead of the party’s planned long march on the federal capital.

The court issued the orders on a petition of former advocate general of Islamabad Niazullah Niazi, who had approached the IHC against the alleged harassment by the police. The petitioner had claimed that the Bani Gala police has prepared a list of PTI leaders asking them to submit a surety bond prior to the long march.

“I got a call from the Bani Gala Police Station, asking me for an affidavit stating that I would remain peaceful,” Niazi said in his petition.

IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah heard the petition as the Islamabad police submitted their report to the court.

When the IHC chief justice asked what kind of lists the police were making, the state council replied that the police inspector-general has made a list of PTI leaders who had earlier been asked to give surety bonds.

Expressing indignation at police officials, Justice Minallah said that “this was harassment and questioned how they could have asked for surety bonds”. “Is this the way? He is a former advocate general,” the IHC chief justice observed while addressing the police.

The police personnel told the court that the report was prepared by the Special Branch and passed onto the Islamabad police chief, who then gave it to the police.

Upon inquiry from the IHC chief justice, sub-inspector Azmat Bajwa confessed that he had called the petitioner and asked him to submit a surety bond.

When the court asked under which law the police asked for surety bonds, the police said that they were following orders and asked for surety bonds due to a possible disturbance during the long march.

The petitioner's counsel maintained that only the magistrate could order surety bonds and not the police. The IHC chief justice ordered the state council to satisfy the court at the next hearing regarding the list prepared by the Special Branch. He said that the procedure adopted by the police for the surety bonds was not legally valid.

The court adjourned the hearing till next week and restrained the police from harassing the petitioner and other citizens.

Mistreatment of citizens during custody

Meanwhile, a petition was filed in the IHC against the alleged mistreatment of citizens by Islamabad police during custody.

Lawyer Iman Zainab Hazir Mazari, former senator Farhatullah Babar and others have filed the petition, seeking to declare custodial violence at police stations illegal. The petitioners have made the interior secretary, the secretary of the Ministry of Human Rights, the Islamabad police inspector-general and others as respondents.

The petition has sought that the Islamabad police chief should issue SOPs for interrogation of suspects.

The petitioners have also sought proceedings against police officer Irshad Cheema for torturing a citizen during custody. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah will hear the case on Tuesday (today).

Police officers summoned in missing person case

Meanwhile, the IHC on Monday summoned the Islamabad police deputy inspector general (DIG) and the senior superintendent of police (SSP) operations on October 21 over the non-recovery of a missing citizen.

During the hearing of the case, IHC judge Aamir Farooq remarked, “you could not find the person who was picked up by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. The man has been missing for eight months and whether he has been killed, please inform us about it”. The IHC judge passed the remarks on a petition seeking the recovery of a missing citizen, named Muhammad Hamid.

The Islamabad police SSP (operations) told the court that the DIG (operations) has fallen ill and he will update the court when he recovered. To this, the judge remarked the DIG fell sick on the day when the court issued the notice. The judge further asked if the Islamabad police inspector-general was doing all well and if he is well, call him to the court.

“I am not the kind of a judge who summons officials unnecessarily, but don't force me to call everyone to the court. The conduct of the Islamabad police is not self-respecting. Either the cops are inept, or they have colluded with another party. Various comments have been made before this court for the past four months. They come here and do nothing except for stand in the court,” the judge observed The court adjourned the hearing in the case till October 21 and summoned the DIG and SSP (operations) at the next hearing.

IHC seeks detail of illegal housing societies

Meanwhile, the IHC on Monday sought details from the Capital Development Authority (CDA) about illegal housing societies in the federal capital. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah directed the CDA to submit the list of illegal housing societies within one day.

During the hearing, Additional Attorney General Munawar Iqbal Dogal adopted the stance that there was no legal bar to introducing housing societies in the name of government institutions. He said that the names of departments and ministries could be used for housing societies as per the laws of cooperative housing societies.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, October 18^th, 2022.