SHC takes exception to failure to collect reports of missing persons from internment centres

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has taken exception to non-filing of reports with regard to whereabouts of missing persons in internment centres in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa by the federal government and directed the ministries of interior and defence to collect reports from the internment centres and submit them before the court.

Hearing petitions against enforced disappearances, a division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto observed that in most of the cases of missing persons, reports from the internment centres had not been collected by the police.

In the case of Maaz Ahmed and Talha Ahmed who were missing since April 6, 2014, the bench observed that the mother of the detained men who was pursuing the case for last eight years was very much disturbed and had lost her hope.

The high court observed that police had failed to collect reports from internment centres and despite several joint investigation team sessions, no clue had been found with regard to their whereabouts.

Petitioner Uzma Shahzadi had told the court that her two sons had been missing for the past eight years and their family did not find any clue about their whereabouts. The high court directed the Sindh inspector general of police as well as the home secretary to take steps for collecting reports from the internment centres of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

The SHC also directed the defence and interior ministries to collect reports from the internment centres and produce the same before the court by March 21. The bench directed the Sindh police chief and home secretary to file specific response regarding why reports were not being collected from the internment centres, which had caused delays in the investigation of cases pertaining to missing persons.