SHC seeks report on action against police officers by June 1

Karachi
The Sindh High Court directed the chief secretary on Thursday to submit a report explaining what action the chief minister had taken against police officials responsible for the May 23 siege during a police operation outside the high court to arrest former home minster Dr Zulfiqar Mirza and his supporters.
The directive came at a hearing of a petition of Mirza seeking action over the court siege and the denial of access to an anti-terrorism court.
At the previous hearing on Tuesday, the high court had rejected a police apology and directed the provincial police chief and other police officers to file affidavits with regard to the court siege.
The inspector general of the Sindh police, Ghulam Hyder Jamali, Karachi’s additional inspector general, Ghulam Qadir Thebo, DIG South Dr Jameel and other police officials filed their affidavits with the court. They tendered an unconditional apology and left themselves at mercy of the court.
Advocate General (AG) Abdul Fatah Malik submitted that he had seen the CCTV footage showing masked men and policemen thrashing persons outside the court, which, he said, was quite surprising and deplorable. He said the incharge of the operation, Major (retd) Saleem, had said he had got information about the presence of heavily armed persons, including two hardened criminals hailing from Fata. The court observed that no police official had informed its registrar about any such happening.
The court inquired the advocate general why the chief minister did not take action against the officers responsible and what action he would have taken if such an incident had happened to him.
The AG said action could not be taken due to cognizance taken by the court.
A division bench, headed by Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, observed that had the chief minister taken notice of the incident the court would not have intervened in the matter.
He directed the chief secretary to inform the chief minister about the matter and submit a report by June 1. He observed that contempt proceedings against the police officials and their affidavits would be taken up after the submission of the report.
At the previous hearing, the court had observed that the conduct of the police officers not only appeared to be an attempt to obstruct the course of justice but also to lower the process and dignity of the court.
On May 23 the high court had taken notice of the siege of its building as well as that of the ATC by the police.
Mirza, an estranged Pakistan People’s Party leader, submitted in his application that police denied him an opportunity to appear before the anti-terrorism court to get his pre-arrest bail extended in a case registered at the Darakhshan police station.