Court demands report signed by ISI, MI

Hearing AJK missing person case, IHC notes move will ensure ‘results’

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad High Court on Friday ordered the defence ministry to submit its report with the signatures of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI) sector commanders in the case of a missing citizen hailing from Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

IHC’s Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani heard the plea for the recovery of AJK resident Khawaja Khurshid, who has been missing for the last 18 days.

Police and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) submitted their reports to the court.

The lawyer representing the government told the court that the police had not registered any case against Khurshid.

Justice Kayani inquired about the defence ministry’s report.

In response, the representative for the defence ministry sought more time from the court, saying that they had received the notice only a day earlier.

Justice Kayani remarked that the defence secretary seemed to be unaware of the situation.

The judge ordered him to submit the report with the signatures of the ISI and MI sector commanders because that would ensure “results”.

When the defence ministry representative sought time till Monday to submit the report, Justice Kayani observed that it would mean that Khurshid would be missing for 21 days by then.

The judge remarked that if Khurshid was involved in any terrorist, criminal or anti-state activity, appropriate action should be taken against him and nobody would object to it.

The IHC later adjourned the hearing until June 24.

Khurshid, a resident of AJK’s Neelum Valley, went missing on June 7.

According to the petition, Khursheed was in Rawalpindi and went to Islamabad’s Sector G-13, but did not return home.

During the previous hearing of the case, the lawyer for the petitioner informed the IHC that Khurshid’s brother had lodged the complaint with the police.