HYDERABAD: Defence, interior secretaries told to file reports
By Our Correspondent
HYDERABAD, April 16: A division bench of the Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit bench, has directed federal interior and defence secretaries to file their affidavits relating to whereabouts of two missing people.
The court expressed disappointment that officials of the departments concerned failed to divulge any information about detained persons.
The court on Thursday directed the additional advocate-general, Sindh, to file affidavits of the home secretary and provincial police officer or any other department working under them to disclose whether Ali Gohar Arisar was arrested or he had ever remained in their custody.
It directed Hakim Ali Siddiqui, the standing counsel for the deputy attorney general, to file affidavits of federal interior and defence secretaries to this effect within 15 days.
The order was passed on the constitutional petition, filed by Mohammad Khan Arisar, father of the detained person through advocate Ayaz Latif Palijo.
He said that Khamiso Rajar worked for agencies and police and he had demanded Rs50,000 from him on November 13, 2005, saying since the petitioner was earning money in remote areas therefore he must pay him Rs50,000 failing which he would implicate him in cases about anti-state activities.
He said that on his refusal he was annoyed and said that if he was arrested then he would not be able to come out of prison.
He said that on December 11 last year, Ali Gohar along with his uncle Abdullah, son of Manjhi Khan Arisar, and Soomar, son of Rahim, were in a barber’s shop in Amolakh in Umerkot when Khamiso Rajar along with three unidentified people arrived there and inquired about Ali Gohar.
He stated that one of them identified himself as sub-inspector of an intelligence agency and others were his subordinate staff adding that Khamiso Rajar told Ali Gohar that he would be branded as an agent of RAW.
He said that respondents arrested and tortured Ali Gohar and before taking him away he was brought to hospital of Dr Khushhal.
When the petitioner came to know about arrest of his son, he approached the FIU office in the Chore cantonment where his son was taken before he was produced before Major Umer in Hyderabad.
He said that his son was illiterate and never visited India, he did not possess passport yet he had been picked up on false charges.
He said that such an act of security, intelligence and law-enforcement agencies was against interest of the country as their actual purpose was to strengthen integrity of the country.
He said that he was able to meet Major Umer but he refused to release his son though he admitted that his son was with him and that he was innocent.
He said that the SHO police station Umerkot refused to take legal action by showing his inability to intervene in the matter as it pertained to intelligence agency.
He apprised the court about his efforts undertaken for seeking his son’s release.
He requested that respondents should be directed to produce his son before the court.
The court, in an identical matter directed federal defence and interior secretaries to verify and ascertain whereabouts of Mohammad Umer, son of a petitioner, who had been missing since August 2004, and submit their affidavits by April 26.
