The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has sought responses from the Chief Secretary and the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) regarding a petition highlighting the deteriorating law and order situation in Kurram district.
During a hearing on the petition, a bench comprising Justice Arshad Ali and Justice Waqar Ahmad was informed by the petitioner's counsel, Advocate Ali Azim Afridi, that the situation in Kurram remains tense. He stated that peace has yet to be restored in the area and that internet and mobile services are still virtually unavailable.
The court noted that despite a previous order seeking a government response, no reply had been submitted. Justice Arshad Ali inquired about which parties had failed to respond. Advocate Afridi informed the court that both the Chief Secretary and the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) had not yet submitted their replies.
The court gave the concerned officials 14 days to submit their responses and adjourned further proceedings on the petition.
In a separate case, the PHC has issued notices to the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council and the Pakistan Bar Council in response to a petition seeking an audit of the K-P Bar Council's funds.
The same bench — Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Waqar Ahmad — heard the petition. The petitioner's counsel argued that the audit should be conducted by a chartered accountant, as mandated under Section 18 of the Pakistan Bar Council Act. He also requested that copies of the audit report be provided to all practicing lawyers.
The Assistant Attorney General recommended that it would be appropriate to issue notices to both bar councils. Accepting this suggestion, the court issued the notices and adjourned the hearing.
Meanwhile, a special Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) has issued bailable arrest warrants for three senior officials of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) for failing to comply with court orders.
The warrants were issued by ATC Judge Muhammad Iqbal Khan after the officers — AIG CTD, SP CTD, and Inspector Iftikhar Khan — failed to appear in court during proceedings initiated under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).
The court noted that despite multiple notices, the three officers failed to produce records in terrorism case No 63. Their repeated non-compliance prompted the court to begin legal proceedings under Section 174 CrPC. Subsequently, bailable arrest warrants were issued, and senior police officials were directed to ensure the officers' appearance at the next hearing.
The hearing has been adjourned until June 14.
In a separate development, the Peshawar ATC ordered the release of a suspect allegedly linked to a banned organization. The suspect was granted bail following legal arguments presented by his counsel, Advocate Khizar Hayat Khazana.
According to the prosecution, the accused, Qari Imran, was arrested by CTD during an operation and was alleged to have promoted the ideology of a proscribed outfit, encouraging others to join. After reviewing the arguments, the court approved his bail request and ordered his release.
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