August 23, 2024
By Rana Malhi
ISLAMABAD:
In a petition hearing at the Islamabad High Court, for the recovery of Professors Mazharul Hassan and Zahoorul Hassan, the judge expressed disapproval at the government’s indifference towards incidents of enforced disappearances. The case was being heard by Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb.
The two professors are brothers of PTI social media activist Azhar Mashwani, and have been missing since June 6. Their father submitted the petition in IHC after it had been disposed off from the Lahore High Court on August 5.
During the hearing the SP Investigation of Punjab Police also appeared before the court and informed that the family had provided important CCTV footage, but due to its low resolution, not much could be determined from it by NADRA or the forensic agencies. He said that although geofencing data of around 10,000 numbers had been collected, uptil now no information had been obtained. He said, no actionable information had been surfaced. The Safe City Project did not have full coverage and so far, no law enforcement agency had been able to reveal anything regarding the disappearance of the two brothers.
The judge expressed doubt of the brothers’ safety, asking when they disappeared at which the police officer confirmed that they had gone missing since June 6.
Babar Awan who was representing the petitioner also appeared in court as did Additional Attorney General (AAG) Munir Iqbal Duggal.
In his arguments, Awan told the court that there were several laws dealing with sedition and incitement to sedition, but there was no mention anywhere of what national interest is.
“National interest is not defined – for me would be to reduce the cost of electricity, and maybe for someone in Balochistan it would mean provision of gas,” he said. “(In any case), I still believe that both the missing brothers will return soon.”
Justice Aurangzeb inquired the AAG whether there had been any developments, to which Duggal responded that ‘high-level communication’ was being made even on Friday, to address the issue and that ‘efforts were ongoing in every possible way’.
The court questioned the AAG whether the investigation had stalled since the case began in the IHC at which Munir Iqbal Duggal assured that the geofencing report had already been prepared.
The judge remarked that it seemed that the government was ‘benefitting from enforced disappearances.’ He said it have been three months and people were being abducted. He said the chief executive was doing nothing, while requests had already been made to the Attorney General (AGP) and the Prime Minister to look into the matter, but they ‘did not seem to care’. The court expressed sympathy with the family of the two brothers. Babar Awan commented that the chief executive did not have the time to go through court orders.
When the PM had been summoned, it was an exercise in futility, the judge said.
The judge said he would pass an order over the matter not being addressed properly between the AG and the PM.
When Babar Awan requested that the PM be summoned to court. Justice Aurangzeb said that it was the AGP who was the chief law officer, while the PM was the head of the State under the Constitution. The court had followed due process and had summoned the Attorney General following due process.
The judge questioned as to why the authorities did not realize that such incidents were damaging the country’s image across the world, to which the AAG responded that the ‘high level communication’ was ongoing even now. The judge asked if there had been any result of the meeting. Justice Aurangzeb stated that if the government did not follow due process, there was nothing to be said.
He directed the SP of the JIT to submit reports, and adjourned the case until Tuesday, August 27.