Missing persons: Govt seeks time to appoint inquiry commission head

Report reveals missing persons Janjua and Faraz had been killed by al Qaeda; families refute claim.

ISLAMABAD: The government has asked the Supreme Court (SC) for more time to appoint a chairman to head the Inquiry Commission on Enforced Disappearances, Express 24/7 reported Thursday.

In the hearing today, the Additional Attorney General (AAG) Karim Khan Agha presented the governments’ report before the two-member bench comprising Justice Nasirul Mulk and Justice Tariq Pervaiz.

The report was revealed under an oath by former major general of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) that Masood Janjua and Faisal Faraz – whom SC had declared that they were killed by al Qaeda six years ago – had had a soft corner for al Qaeda and that both were killed in Afghanistan.

However, Janjua’s wife Amna Masood Janjua, who chairs the NGO Defence of Human Rights, rejected the report claiming that the ISI still has her husband in its custody.

Meanwhile, in a separate case of Fazale Rabbi, the interior ministry had submitted a report in the court which stated that Fazal had fled the country after seizing Rs3 million from a retired army officer.

On the other hand, Fazal’s wife had rejected the interior ministry’s report.

The Inquiry Commission had earlier presented a report before the apex court that stated that a total of 104 missing persons have been recorded so far.

Earlier, the SC conducted hearing of a number of missing persons' cases along with four please of habeas corpus that commenced from Monday.