PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Tuesday ordered the chief of Kohat’s notified internment centre to produce report of the autopsy of an internee, who had died recently there under mysterious circumstances.

Appearing before Chief Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel and Justice Malik Manzoor Hussain during a hearing into her case, Hukam Jana, the mother of the deceased person, Noor Gul, insisted her son was innocent and that he was the sole breadwinner of the family.

With misty eyes, the old woman, a resident of southern Bannu district, said her son was a rickshaw driver and was taken into custody by security forces around 18 months ago.

She said the deceased had three small children and that after his mysterious death, there was no one to look after the family.

According to the woman, her son first remained missing for quite some time and then she learned that he was detained at the Kohat internment centre.

“I met him twice at the centre early this year and applied for another meeting recently. However, on Sept 14, I was told about his death and was asked to collect the body,” she said.

The woman said at the time of his arrest, her son was healthy but the body given to the family showed him virtually like a skeleton.

She said the court should provide her with justice over the mysterious death of son.

The bench ordered additional advocate general Waqar Ahmad Khan to convey to the chief of the Kohat internment centre to submit the report of the autopsy of the deceased on Oct 16 and adjourned the hearing into the case until then.

The cases of deaths at internment centres, especially at that of Kohat, have been surfacing frequently.

In several such cases, the court has sought autopsy reports but the relevant authorities have yet to comply with the orders.

PRODUCTION OF DETAINEES ORDERED: The bench also directed the chief of Lakki Marwat internment centre to produce two brothers, whose mother claimed that they were interned there.

Nargis Bibi, a resident of Swat, told the bench that her two minor sons, including Qadir Shah and Asghar Shah, were taken into custody by the law-enforcement agencies five years ago and that they had been missing since then.

She said Qadir Shah was mentally challenged.

“Now, I’ve come to know that both of my sons have been kept at Lakki Marwat internment centre. I don’t know why they have been arrested and what charges they face,” she said.

The bench took up for hearing 16 habeas corpus petitions related to ‘enforced disappearances’.

In the case, additional attorney general Syed Attique Shah and deputy attorney general Manzoor Khalil represented the federal government, whereas Waqar Ahmad appeared on behalf of the provincial government.

SHOW CAUSE NOTICES ISSUED: In some cases, the bench issued show cause notices to the provincial home secretary, commissioner of Bannu division and the chief of Lakki Marwat internment centre when it was informed that the court had sought reports regarding internment of certain internees but so far the reports were not submitted.

The bench directed the three officials to submit their written explanations within a fortnight and also directed that they should appear on Oct 16. The bench asked the officials that if they were so inefficient that they could not submit the required reports then why they had been occupying such important posts.

In another case, a woman from Swat, Jan Saba, said seven of her close relatives including her husband and two sons had been allegedly in the illegal custody of security forces for many years.

She said one of her sons was traced in Malakand internment centre, whereas rest of the six relatives had been missing.

The woman said she had also filed applications with the commission on enforced disappearances and that on its order, an FIR was also registered but no proper investigation was carried out.

The bench ordered the interior and defence ministries and provincial home department to submit reports regarding the said ‘missing persons’.

Furthermore, a case regarding the killing of a ‘missing person’ was adjourned as the relevant SHO did not turn up as he has gone to Saudi Arabia to perform Haj.

The petitioner, Asadullah, has alleged that his brother, Roohullah, was killed in custody in Nov 2013.

He claimed he was taken away by the intelligence agencies from outside Peshawar prison when he came out on bail in a case of terrorism.

While the case regarding his alleged illegal detention was pending and the court had summoned the provincial police officer, his body carrying marks of torture and bullet injuries was recovered on Nov 21, 2013.

Published in Dawn, October 1st, 2014