Illegal detention: Lakhvi withdraws contempt plea

Counsel argues that the petitioner has already been released by another court.

ISLAMABAD: After months of legal battles Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attack, withdrew a contempt petition challenging his detention under Maintenance of Public Order (MPO), as he has already been released on the orders of another court.

Justice Noorul Haq N Qureshi of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday accepted his application after his counsel told the court that the petition before the court referred to an IHC order which was violated, but since the petitioner has already been released under a Lahore High Court order, they wanted to withdraw their petition.

During the previous hearing, the court had directed the interior secretary and Okara district coordination officer (DCO) to submit replies on the contempt petition.

On March 13, the same IHC bench had allowed Lakhvi’s petition against the detention order and said, “The petitioner be set at liberty immediately if he is not required in any other case”. The same day, the Okara DCO issued a 30-day detention order for Lakhvi under MPO.

Lakhvi’s counsel Advocate Raja Rizwan Abbasi had argued before the court that an IHC bench had declared the detention order issued by the Islamabad district magistrate illegal, and by issuing a similar order, the Okara DCO was in contempt of court.

The IHC bench hearing the case had directed the respondents to submit a reply by April 14.

Lakhvi is allegedly an operational commander of the banned militant outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LT) and an alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

On December 18, 2014, an Anti Terrorism Court (ATC) court had granted post arrest bail to Lakhvi against a surety bond of one million.

Later the federal government had issued detention orders for Lakhvi under MPO Section 3, which was further extended on January 18 and February 18 for 30 days each.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 15^th, 2015.