IHC summons interior, finance secys for not implementing court’s verdict

ISLAMABAD – The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday summoned secre­taries of interior and finance for not implementing court’s ver­dict wherein it had directed to pay compensation amount to the family of a missing person Sajid Mahmood. 

A single bench of IHC compris­ing Chief Justice of IHC Justice Athar Minallah conducted hearing of the petition of Mahira Sajid the wife of missing information tech­nology expert Sajid Mehmood. 

During the hearing, the IHC Chief Justice remarked that it was humiliating when the state ex­pressed its ignorance about the missing persons. 

Justice Athar said the state had accepted its failure in this case and accepted it as a case of enforced disappearance. He said now it was responsibility of the state to re­solve it. 

He directed the authorities to pay the remaining amount of com­pensation to the wife of miss­ing person within two weeks and present the cheques of payments before the court on the next hear­ing. The court further directed the secretaries of interior and finance and Chief Commissioner to ap­pear before the court in person if cheques of the said amount were not give to the victim family. 

After issuing the aforemen­tioned directions, the bench de­ferred hearing in this matter till October 19 for further proceed­ings. 

In this matter, the petitioner’s lawyers informed the court that none of its directions had been fol­lowed by the authority concerned. 

In 2018, the IHC bench had an­nounced its verdict in the case of a missing person IT expert Sajid Mehmood directing the investiga­tors to effectively investigate his al­leged enforced disappearance. The bench in its 47-page detailed ver­dict also directed to pay Rs.117,500 to the victim family every month as compensation amount and termed enforced disappearance was one of the most cruel and inhuman acts and categorized as a crime against humanity. 

The IHC bench held that it was duty of the Special Branch, Intel­ligence Bureau, the Inter Services Intelligence and the Military Intel­ligence to collect information and promptly report to the concerned functionaries regarding any inci­dent of abduction of a citizen hav­ing the characteristics of an ‘en­forced disappearance’ and to take effective measures in tracing the whereabouts of the victim. It is not­ed that these instrumentalities of the State are part of the JIT consti­tuted under the Regulations. In the case of failure in fulfilling this duty the respective Sector Commanders shall expose themselves to being accountable and proceeded against.

It continued that the said month­ly payment shall be made to the petitioner till the State through its functionaries has traced the whereabouts or fate of the detenu. 

“Keeping in view the facts and cir­cumstances of this case, this Court imposes cost of Rs.100,000/- each on Lt. Gen (Retd) Zamir-ul-Has­san Shah, Secretary Ministry of Defence, Zulfiqar Haider, Chief Commissioner, Islamabad Capi­tal Territory, Khalid Khan Khat­tak, Inspector General of Police, Islamabad Capital Territory and Capt. (Retd) Mushtaq Ahmed, Dis­trict Magistrate, Islamabad Capital Territory. A cost of Rs.300,000/- (Rupees three hundred thousand only) is imposed on Qaiser Niaz, Inspector who was the Incharge of Police Station, Shalimar on 14-03-2016,” said the judgment.

It added that the officials named above shall pay the costs through crossed cheques drawn in the name of the petitioner within ten days from the date of announce­ment of this judgement.