The Sindh High Court (SHC) issued notices to the home secretary and jail authorities against the shifting of two under-trial prisoners (UTPs) from Karachi’s Central Prison to a Hyderabad jail.

Petitioners Ahsan Gul and Lal Khan submitted in two identical petitions that their sons, Abdul Razzak and Inayatullah, were arrested by the police in the Numaish area in connection with a Numaish firing incident in which two scouts, Zain Ali and Azhar Hussain, were killed on November 27, 2011.

The incident took place when participants of an Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat rally against a Nato forces’ attack on Pakistani troops in Mohamand Agency were dispersed.

They submitted that the trial of the detainees had been pending before anti-terrorism courts in Karachi since last year as the jail authorities shifted the detainees to the Hyderabad prison without any reason.

They said that the unlawful shifting of the detainees to the Hyderabad prison would hamper the proceedings pending before the anti-terrorism courts, and prayed to the court to direct the jail authorities to order the shifting of the under-trial prisoners to the Central Prison, Karachi.

A division bench, headed by Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi, has issued notices to the advocate-general, the authorities of the Karachi and Hyderabad prisons and others and called their comments on August 29.

Doctors’ petition

The SHC directed the provincial law officer to file comments on a petition filed by the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) against non-upgradation of the service structure of doctors.

The PMA submitted that the provincial government had decided to upgrade the service structure of doctors in March 2011 but the proposal had not been implemented thus far despite the approval of the summary and assurances by the authorities concerned. It was submitted that the service structure was being followed in all the provinces except Sindh on a yearly basis.

The court was prayed to direct the government to implement the upgradation of the service structure of doctors without further delay.

The SHC directed the provincial law officer to file comments by the next date of hearing.

Plea against travel ban

The SHC suspended the federal interior ministry’s ban on travel by a former government official and allowed him to perform Umrah for 15 days.

The court was hearing a petition of Sikandar Ali Mallah against the placement of his name on the exit control list.

The court observed that comments had not been filed by the federal government and in meantime the petitioner was allowed to travel abroad for 15 days against a surety of Rs500,000 before the Naazir of the court.

Bugti murder case

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Friday granted protective bail to Balochistan’s ex-home minister, Shoaib Sherwani, in Jamhoori Watan Party chief Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti’s murder case, PPI added

A single bench, headed by Justice Shahid Anwar Bajwa, granted him bail for three weeks against a surety of Rs500,000. Sherwani moved the SHC to seek the grant of the protective bail following the issuance of non-bailable warrants for his arrest by the court in Sibi, Balochistan.

His counsel, Muhammad Ilyas Khan and Farooq Ahmed, submitted that Nawabzada Jamil Akbar Bugti, son of late Akbar Khan Bugti, lodged an FIR against the murder of his father.

They said at that time the petitioner was home minister of Balochistan but had no knowledge of the action taken against Bugti by agencies of the federal government. Sherwani was not present at the scene of the offence, nor had any role in it.

They stated ex-Balochistan chief minister Jam Muhammad Yousuf, also nominated in this case, was granted protective bail by a division bench of the Balochistan High Court on July 16, 2012. The applicant wanted to surrender before the trial court, and prayed that he be granted protective bail.

SHC order said: “Without touching merits of bail application, protective bail is granted for a period of three weeks to applicant, because one of intervening weeks is Eid week, upon his furnishing a solvent surety for a sum of Rs 500, 000 and PR Bond in like amount to the satisfaction of Nazir of this Court.”