Plea for freedom: Court dismisses Lakhvi’s petition

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday dismissed Jamatud Dawa (JuD) leader Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi’s petition challenging his detention.

A single bench consisting of Justice Mahmood Maqbool Bajwa reserved the order on Lakhvi’s writ petition in the high court challenging the detention orders passed by the Punjab home department.

On March 14, a day after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) ordered Lakhvi’s release, the Punjab home ministry issued orders to restore his detention for a month.

The petitioner’s counsel had argued against Lakhvi’s detention as being illegal and a violation of the order of IHC. In his petition, Lakhvi pleaded that the government had issued fresh orders for his detention owing to pressure exerted by India.

He also requested the court to set aside the detention order and direct the government to release him.

“The moment the court granted me bail, the entire Indian media and functionaries started propagating against Pakistan, which resulted into further confinement,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 21^st, 2015.