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| April 25, 2006 | Tuesday | Rabi-ul-Awwal 26, 1427 |
Mano Bheel case taken up by SC: Information about accused sought
ISLAMABAD, April 24: The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the DCO concerned to submit details of property and bank accounts of Abdul Rehman Marri who is allegedly involved in the kidnapping of nine family members of Mano Bheel.
The Supreme Court was hearing a suo motu case on the detention of family members of Mr Bheel on an application of a Swedish human rights activist Torborg Isakssan.
Headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, a three-member bench asked Mirpurkhas DIG Saleemullah to provide a complete immigration record, including passport and ticket number, on the next date of hearing of the accused.
Advocate Raja Qureshi, who expressed his inability to represent the accused in the case, told the bench that Mr Marri was seriously ill and hospitalised in Saudi Arabia and therefore, unable to appear before the court.
Sindh assistant advocate-general Qazi Khalid told the bench that the Sindh High Court had issued non-bailable warrants against the accused which had been sent to the ambassador of Saudi Arabia.
The chief justice asked the DIG about recovery of the kidnapped people but he replied that he had no clue to their whereabouts.
He said that there was a chance that the kidnap victims might had been shifted to Balochistan.
In 1996, a special task force of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan had rescued with the help of the local administration, Mano Bheel and his family members along with 71 other haris engaged in bonded labour at the farm of Abdul Rahman Mari.
On February 4, 1998, nine members were again kidnapped allegedly by the same landlord after the family refused to pay back a loan of Rs190,000.
The missing people are: Khero (father, 70) Akho (mother, 60), Motan (wife, 40), Talal (brother, 25), Momal (daughter, 13), Chaman (son 10), Kanjee (son, 8), Dhanee (daughter 1) and a relative Kirto.
An FIR was lodged against Abdul Rehman Marri but being an influential feudal lord, he managed to get an interim bail and absconded to Saudi Arabia.
The bench will resume hearing on May 8, 2006.
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