KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Monday sought replies of the chief secretary and the provincial police chief in a constitutional petition of SSP Rao Anwar against placing him under suspension for arresting Khawaja Izhar-ul-Hasan, leader of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly, belonging to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar also issued a notice to the provincial law officer and put off the hearing to Sept 27 after hearing arguments of the petitioner’s lawyer, Barrister Salahuddin Ahmed, on the maintainability of the petition.

The counsel submitted that SSP Rao on Sept 16 was informed that the investigation officer, Muhammad Hussain Chandio of the Sohrab Goth police station, was seeking arrest of Khawaja Izhar-ul-Hasan, who was nominated in two FIRs.

He said that following the arrest of the leader of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly, the SSP was placed under suspension.

Barrister Ahmed contended that SSP Rao’s suspension order was without jurisdiction or lawful authority as it was passed by the chief secretary with the purported approval of the chief minister, whereas there was nothing on record to show that the competent authority had actually ordered his suspension.

He said that any such order of suspension could only be passed after due application of mind by the competent authority regarding the necessity and expediency of such an order keeping in view the merits of the case and the facts and law involved.

The counsel submitted that the suspension of SSP Rao was announced within half an hour of the arrest of Khawaja Izhar when there could not have been any consideration of merits of his actions nor of the legality of the arrest.

He further said that no exception could be taken to the arrest of a nominated accused person mentioned in an FIR and that there was no law that required the approval of the speaker of the Sindh Assembly to arrest an accused member of the assembly.

Barrister Ahmed said the only requirement of Rule 82 of the Rules of Procedure was to intimate the speaker immediately after the arrest.

He said SSP Rao had no opportunity of doing so, though, in any case, the responsibility to do so rested upon the arresting officer, who was the investigating officer.

The counsel contended that the order placing SSP Rao under suspension violated the principles of natural justice and his rights guaranteed under Article 10-A of the Constitution.

He argued that the order of SSP Rao’s suspension undermined the rule of law guaranteed under Article 4 of the Constitution as it laid rest to the principle that the law was equal for everyone inasmuch as it had subjected a police officer to penal action merely because he had the temerity to apply the law to a political leader.

Citing the chief secretary and the inspector general of police, Sindh, as respondents, the petitioner SSP asked the court to declare his suspension order illegal.

He also asked the court to restrain the respondents from effecting any further reprisals or retribution against him on account of Mr Hasan’s arrest.

Later talking to Dawn, SSP Rao said the raid was conducted in accordance with the law.

“All legal formalities were fulfilled while raiding the house of Khawaja Izhar,” he stated in the petition.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had asked the IGP on Friday to suspend SSP Anwar for arresting Mr Hasan without “taking the government into confidence”.

Published in Dawn September 20th, 2016