The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday ordered that Nimra Kazmi — the teenage girl who was allegedly kidnapped in Karachi last month and later surfaced in Punjab — be sent to a shelter home and a medical test be carried out to determine her age.

The order was issued after a two-member high court bench comprising Justice Agha Faisal and Justice Mohammad Iqbal Kalhoro heard petitions for the recovery of Nimra and Dua Zehra, the latter of whom had also gone missing last month from Karachi and later turned up in Punjab.

Sindh Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kamran Fazal, Karachi Additional IGP Ghulam Nabi Memon and the families of the two girls were among those present in the court today.

The police presented Nimra and the person who claims to be her husband in the court.

Nimra was asked if she was currently studying, to which she answered that she was in grade 10. Justice Iqbal remarked that her age must be under 18. To this, she claimed that her age was underwritten due to her studies.

Justice Iqbal said that according to Sindh laws no girl under the age of 18 could be married as he sought any documents to ascertain her age from the petitioner's lawyer.

The court subsequently ordered that she be sent to a shelter home and a medical test be carried out to determine her age. Justice Iqbal said she would be allowed to go with her "husband" if her age was found to be 18 or more.

Court orders transfer of Sindh IGP

Meanwhile, in the hearing for Dua's case, the SHC ordered that Sindh IGP Kamran Fazal be replaced with "an efficient officer". The court also directed the next police chief to produce Dua before the court in the next hearing.

The written order issued by the SHC, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, detailed the sequence of events after Dua's mother approached the court seeking relief.

It noted that on May 24, the Sindh IGP appeared in court and submitted "a rather fanciful story" that a mobile signal allegedly belonging to one of the abductors was being monitored across the "length and breadth of the country" but no other effort apart from this had been taken to recover the child.

"Despite it being apparent that no serious effort had been expended to recover the child, this court exercised restraint and accepted the IGP's undertaking that the child would be recovered before the next date," it said. "The said representation remains unsatisfied as today a further fanciful explanation was provided for non-compliance."

"It is our tentative assessment that the IG Police, Kamran Fazal, remains unwilling to perform his duty, despite repeated direct order rendered herein and representation provided to this court. In view hereof, we are constrained to issue a show-cause notice to Kamran Fazal to explain as to why proceedings may not be initiated" for failing to comply with the orders of this court, it stated.

The SHC directed the next Sindh IGP to appear in person at the next hearing, along with a sworn affidavit.

The court also deferred the issue of the official's inability to perform his duty to the executive for due consideration. The Establishment Division secretary is directed to immediately look into this matter and form an opinion within a reasonable time, the order stated.

Earlier, Sindh Advocate General Salman Talibuddin informed the court that Dua was either in Hazara or Mansehra and the police had conducted raids to recover her but the abductors got tipped off 10 to 15 minutes before.

He said Hazara's deputy inspector general of police or Mansehra's senior superintendent of police should be summoned by the court.

The bench asked the advocate general if the court had the authority to summon the DIG or SSP. The court did not get an answer.

Justice Iqbal said the court had been informed before that the father of Dua's husband was a mere farmer. "Now you're saying the DIG is helping them?" the judge questioned.

"I'm not saying the DIG is helping them. Some police officers and lawyers are helping them," AG Talibuddin said.

"Officials there are in touch with the Sindh IGP. They say she will be handed over [to them] either today or tomorrow," the AG said.

At this, Justice Faisal remarked that the police kept on giving the same answer to the court.

Justice Faisal said the court had given every kind of concession to the Sindh police while Justice Iqbal asked why the police had become "so incompetent". He said the court had been issuing recovery orders for 21 days, adding that "if the police couldn't do so then who would?"

Justice Iqbal wondered if those behind Dua's abduction were so powerful that the police couldn't recover her.

"A lawyer named Wasim is helping the family of the boy," AG Talibuddin said.

Justice Faisal remarked that Dua would have been recovered by now if the police had spent even one per cent of the energy in recovering her that it did in placating the court.

The advocate general responded that Dua would have been presented in court within in two to three days, if she were in Sindh.

Justice Iqbal said the court had given one last chance but the girl was still not recovered. Thus, the court would issue a show-cause notice to IGP Fazal, he said, adding that the notice would be retracted if Dua was presented in the court by Friday.

The case was subsequently adjourned to Friday.