Comments on Bilawal’s plea for security sought by Nov 15

The Sindh High Court on Tuesday issued notices to the federal and provincial law officers on a petition filed by Pakistan Peoples Party chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari seeking adequate security from police and Rangers, as well as permission for travelling in bullet-proof vehicles with factory-manufactured tinted glasses and having his own personal guards with licensed weapons anywhere in the country.

In a petition which he filed in the high court a day earlier, the young PPP leader said he had been receiving threats to his life and there were security agencies’ report which established that his life was at great risk. He also sought permission for having his personnel guards with licensed arms at his home or at any other part of the country.

After Tuesday’s preliminary hearing drew to a close, the SHC division bench headed by Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah issued notices to the deputy attorney general and advocate general Sindh to submit their comments by November 15.

In the petition, Bilawal has submitted that after the assassination of his mother Benazir Bhutto, PPP chairperson and former prime minster, in December 2007, he and his family were under a continuous threat from undemocratic forces in the country. He said he had always had apprehension about his and his family members’ safety because PPP leaders had been receiving threats to their lives and property from extremists and terrorists organisations.

His counsel Akhtar Hussain and Masud Ghani said the PPP chairman wanted to travel in bullet-proof vehicles with tinted glasses. They said he also wanted security guards possessing licensed weapons to accompany him and his family members whenever and wherever they travelled in the country.  

Referring to security agencies’ reports warning of serious threats to petitioner’s life, the counsel said the security agencies had emphasised the need for making all security arrangements, including a 24-hour special security cover, whenever Bilawal undertook visits to any part of Sindh and other provinces of the country.

However, they said, the request was not being entertained by the authorities at federation, capital and at provincial levels. They maintained that the law and order situation in the country was precarious, which was also evident from various instances of attacks on different important personalities, some of whom had lost their lives.

Citing the federal interior ministry, the provincial home department and the director general of the Sindh Rangers as respondents, the counsel asked the court to direct the respondents and all law enforcement and other agencies to provide a 24-hour special security cover and allow the petitioner to travel in vehicles having factory-manufactured tinted glasses and have his own personal security guards with licensed arms at his home or while travelling or addressing public meetings.

The SHC had also granted petitions of Bilawal’s father, Asif Ali Zardari, PPP co-chairman and former president of Pakistan, and his aunt, Faryal Talpur, seeking security, bullet-proof vehicles and having private security guards.