SHC grants protective bail to PPP’s Qadir Patel

Directs Rangers’ counsel to get Nisar Morai’s medical tests done from doctors of the detainee’s choice

Karachi

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Friday granted protective pre-arrest bail to Pakistan PeopleS Party leader Qadir Patel nominated as co-accused of former petroleum minister Dr Asim Hussain.

Patel along with other political leaders of various parties was named as Dr Hussain’s accomplice in providing medical treatment and shelter to terrorists, Lyari gang-war criminals.

Currently abroad, Patel submitted through his attorney that the trial court had issued arrest warrants against him and that he wished to surrender before the court and face the proceedings, however, he feared that he would be arrested on arrival.

He requested the high court to grant him protective bail so he could appear before the trial court safely. 

A division bench headed by Justice Ahmed Ali M Sheikh granted Patel bail for a week against a surety bond of Rs200,000.

A close aide of former president and PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, Dr Hussain was arrested in August last year from a meeting of the provincial Higher Education Commission (HEC); he was heading the body at the time.

He was handed over to the Rangers on a 90-day preventive detention. A case was registered against him at the North Nazimabad police station.

Other political leaders included Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s mayor nominer Waseem Akhtar, senior leaders Abdul Rauf Siddiqui and MQM-dissidents, now heading the Pak Sarzameen Party Anees Qaimkhani and Saleem Shahzad.

The rest of the accused besides Qaimkhani and Shahzad had already obtained protective bails from the court.

 

Treatment for Morai

The paramilitary force was directed by the SHC to get PPP leader and former chairman Fishermen Cooperative Society (FCS), Nisar Morai, treated from doctors of his choice.

Arrested from Islamabad, Morai was currently under a 90-day preventive detention of the Rangers in Karachi.

The directives came on a petition filed by Morai’s wife, Dr Seema Naz, who maintained that her spouse was detained by the Rangers for 90 days under anti terrorism law on March 16 but the family was not being allowed to meet him.

She submitted that Morai was suffering from various ailments and required proper medical attention.

She feared that her spouse would not be provided proper medical treatment in accordance with the law as his detention was made on political grounds.

She requested the court to direct the Rangers to provide medical treatment to the detainee following a proper medical examination by a senior medical practitioner, and that family members be allowed to meet him.

The Rangers counsel maintained that according to medical tests conducted by a doctor while under detention show that he does not require medical treatment.

The court directed the Rangers authorities to allow meeting of the detainee with his family members twice in a week and get his medical check-up done from doctors of Morai’s choice.

Morai, also stated to be a close aide of former President Zardari was alleged by Rangers to have facilitated target killers, demanded extortion and was involved in other offences which fell under the ambit of the Anti-Terrorism Act.