HYDERABAD: Justice Salahuddin Panwhar of the Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit bench, has directed the Hyderabad DIG to ensure that the names of 3,270 proclaimed offenders (POs) in Hyderabad range are placed in the exit control list (ECL) and their accounts frozen in line with the relevant order of the high court’s Larkana bench.

In his order dated Aug 1, the judge also directed the Mirpurkhas and Nawabshah DIGs to submit reports with regard to POs/absconders within their respective areas. He asked the court’s office to communicate the order through all modes. “The assistant prosecutor general shall ensure that compliance shall be made in letter and spirit,” the order read. The hearing was adjourned till Aug 22.

The court was seized with a petition filed by Qamaruddin stating that he had lodged an FIR (182/16) with the A-Section police in Dadu district against Ashiq Khokhar and some private individuals.

He, through his counsel, informed the court that absconding accused were harassing him. He prayed to court to direct the Dadu SSP and and A-Section SHO to provide protection to him and his family.

He also prayed to court that the Jamshoro and B-Section SHOs be also restrained from causing any harassment to him and his family.

SP (legal) Jameel Hashmi, appearing before the judge on behalf of the Hyderabad DIG stated that as per the police records, there had been 3,270 POs and 12,928 absconders within the region until July 31, 2016. A copy of the report containing the figures as submitted in court was provided to petitioner’s counsel, Pervez Tariq Tagar.

The report, signed by Hyderabad DIG Khadim Rind, was submitted in response to a court order passed on July 22. According to it, all senior superintendents of police (SSPs) are directed to ensure proper maintenance of relevant registers under relevant rules.

They are directed to ensure attachment of properties of such POs for whom proceedings under Section 88 of CrPC are completed and they are required to ensure a well-organised website, containing details of POs wanted by concerned courts and police stations.

DIG Rind said that such information should be user-friendly for private information whereby information shared by someone should be sent automatically to concerned police stations, investigating officer, SSP or sessions judge simultaneously. Information regarding the website should be widely circulated for general public through media while ensuring that names of people sharing information should be kept secret.

He said that all district police chiefs were also directed to establish a cell for maintaining a record of such persons. He said that such a cell should be linked with the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra). A mechanism should also be evolved in consultation with the senior member Board of Revenue (BoR) so that details of proceedings of attachment of properties were readily available.

He said that it would develop a networking with the consultation of the State Bank for getting/obtaining details of bank accounts of such persons and then to provide such information to concerned courts or authority for attachment/necessary action.

He said that police chiefs had reported compliance of directives of the Sindh High Court, Larkana bench, reported in the Pakistan Legal Decisions 2016.

Published in Dawn, August 3rd, 2016