Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court (PHC), Justice SM Atiq Shah, has stated that the federal government has constituted a commission to deal with cases of missing persons, and all such cases will now be heard by this body. Justice (retd) Afsar Shah has been officially notified as a member of the commission.
The remarks were made during the hearing of petitions seeking the recovery of missing persons. During the proceedings, lawyers for the petitioners, the Assistant Attorney General, the Additional Advocate General, and the focal person on missing persons appeared before the court.
At the outset, the Chief Justice observed that the Interior Ministry had confirmed the activation of the commission and its mandate to hear cases involving agencies. The focal person also reiterated that all cases against agencies regarding enforced disappearances will now fall under the commission's jurisdiction.
During the hearing, the father of a missing youth appeared before the court and alleged that his sons had been taken by the police. He further claimed that on a previous occasion, his children were picked up and only released after money was paid. Upon inquiry, he informed the court that officers from Hayatabad and Mathra police stations had taken bribes from him. He added that his sons worked as motorcycle mechanics.
The Chief Justice directed the Advocate General to obtain details of the matter and report back to the court.
In another case from Takht Bhai, the father of a missing youth told the bench that his son had been taken by local police and has not been heard from since. He said repeated applications to the authorities had yielded no response. The court issued a notice to the District Police Officer (DPO) Mardan and summoned him in the next hearing before adjourning the proceedings.
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