IHC urges police not to 'unnecessarily' harass people

High court's directives come during hearing of PTI leader Omar Ayub's wife's petition

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday, during the hearing of a plea filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Omar Ayub's wife against the raid at her residence, urged the police not to harass people unnecessarily.

The PTI leader’s spouse had moved the high court against the raid at her house as well the harassment of her family.

During the hearing of the case today, her lawyer informed the court about the "threats" being given to Ayub's young son and pleaded that he should not be threatened.

The court directed the police to only arrest the person named in the first information report (FIR) and not harass others. "Do not unnecessarily harass people by climbing over the walls of their homes," the judge remarked. 

The senior superintendent of police (SSP) operations assured the court that its orders would be complied with.

The state council said that an FIR was lodged against the petitioner on May 10, a copy of which is attached, and that all legal proceedings were completed and search warrants were in place before the raid.

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The court adjourned the hearing till next week, ordering the provision of the relevant documents to the petitioner.

Last month, the recently appointed secretary general of the party Omar Ayub stated that the Islamabad police raided his residence and took away his vehicle.

In a tweet, the former federal minister claimed that cops from Islamabad’s Shalimar police station raided his house at around 12:30 am without a search warrant and “stole” his parked Toyota Hilux Twin Cabin Model 2011.

“[The] Islamabad police [are] indulging in illegal searches and now vehicle thefts,” he added.

“Members of the judiciary, civil servants and diplomats should take care of their vehicles as the police [have] resorted to stealing vehicles to top up their salaries in these super high inflationary times!!” he continued.

Ayub also pondered where was he supposed to have a case registered for his stolen vehicle as the police themselves were allegedly involved in the act.