PESHAWAR, Nov 27: A two-member Peshawar High Court bench on Wednesday disposed of nine habeas corpus petitions after learning about the shifting of 10 missing persons concerned to the notified internment centres.

According to a list submitted by Deputy Attorney General Mohammad Iqbal Mohmand to Justice Mian Fasihul Mulk and Justice Ikramullah Khan, six of the said detainees were shifted to the Lakki Marwat internment centre, two to that of Kohat and one each to those of Malakand and Swat.

The bench was hearing around 280 habeas corpus petitions filed by relatives of detainees.

In most of these petitions, intelligence agencies and army were charged with taking away people.

The list showed two missing brothers, Noorzada and Shahzada, were shifted to Lakki Marwat internment centre, while eight others, including Qaisar Khan, Younas Khan, Mohammad Younas, Noor Ali, Noor Mohammad, Bilal, Taj Mohammad and Akbar Siddique, were shifted to other internment centres.

The DAG also submitted a Defence Ministry report about the status of the detainees, whose names were mentioned in the said habeas corpus petitions.

According to the report prepared by deputy director (legal) at the ministry Major Mohammad Ali, most of the said detainees were not in the custody of the intelligence agencies.

The DAG said the Defence Ministry had already communicated to the General Headquarters, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI) about the high court’s directives issued on different occasions for the recovery of missing persons.

He said except the said 10 internees, other detainees had not been in custody of the agencies but still the ministry was carrying out further ground check to ascertain their exact position.

About the court’s previous order for the Federal Task Force on Missing Persons to produce detailed report regarding its functioning, another DAG Muzamil Khan requested the bench to give him more time for the purpose saying the task force was in the process of finalising its report.

The bench accepted the request and adjourned the hearing until Dec 10.

The same date has already been fixed for hearing into 160 other missing person cases.

Currently, the high court has been dealing with around 500 petitions of missing persons.

On Oct 31, the court had directed the task force to produce detailed report on what policy it had evolved and steps taken by it for tackling the cases of enforced disappearances.

During the same hearing, the court had warned that if the missing persons could not be recovered, then the court would constitute a larger bench for hearing this issue and the said bench would also examine the question regarding the legality of stay of security forces in Fata and Pata.

Meanwhile, lawyers boycotted local courts in Peshawar to show solidarity with their colleagues, who were manhandled by police a day ago in Islamabad.

Lawyers didn’t appear in the enforced disappearance cases, whereas relatives of missing persons visited the high court in a large number.

The visitors included several women, children and elders, who carried pictures of missing relatives and placards with messages for their early, safe recovery.