PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday put on notice the director general (DG) Inter-Services Intelligence, regional director Military Intelligence (MI) and police officials in the missing persons’ cases to explain he whereabouts of the detenues picked up by the spy agencies.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel and Justice Roohul Amin issued notices to DG ISI, in-charge of 9-Division of Pakistan Army in Kohat and secretary Interior Ministry in two missing persons case. The bench asked the respondents to inform the court about the whereabouts of the missing persons.

Muhammad Ayub, brother of a missing person, claimed in the habeas corpus petition that the officials of ISI and 9-Division of Pakistan Army picked up his brother, Asghar and a labourer, Bilal on July 2, 2012 and their whereabouts were unknown since then.

Sahibzada Riazatul Haq, the petitioner’s lawyer, submitted before the bench that first the respondents picked the detenues unlawfully and then kept them in illegal detention.Another bench of the high court comprising Justice Mian Fasihul Mulk and Justice Roohul Amin issued notices to regional director Military Intelligence, Peshawar, station commander ISI Peshawar, joint director IB, Provincial Police Officer and station house officer, Hayatabad Police Station in a missing person case.

The bench directed the respondents to give details about the whereabouts of the missing person in the case.Tahirullah, a resident of Shahkas in Jumrud tehsil of Khyber Agency, claimed in the petition that on July 8, 2012 the Army and spy agencies’ officials with help from cops of the Hayatabad Police Station took his away his brother Muhammad Rafique.

Javed A Khan appeared for the petitioner. He submitted that first the agencies and military officials tortured the detenue and then whisked him away to an unknown location.He said the detenue was picked up in the presence of his relative Muhammad Zubair when he was purchasing vegetables in the market.

The high court would hear all the missing persons’ cases pending before the court on August 16 as it had asked the respondents intelligence agencies to release the missing persons if there were no charges against them or expedite shifting them to internment centres if they had some evidence of their involvement in the anti-state or terrorism activities.

During the course of hearing, Chief Justice Dost Muhammad Khan had asked the heads of spy agencies in the missing persons’ cases that no compromise would be made on the issue and it was the courts’ prime responsibility to protect fundamental human rights of citizens, including life and liberty as guaranteed by the Constitution.