JIT told to probe killing of missing man in ‘police encounter’

The Sindh High Court on Thursday directed a joint investigation team (JIT) to probe the extra judicial killing of a missing person in an alleged police encounter.

The direction came on a petition filed by Nadra Parveen against the extra judicial killing of her son and detention of another son by law enforcement agencies’ personnel. The petitioner submitted that her house, in Gulshan-e-Maymar, was raided by LEAs on December 23 in which one of her sons, Syed Naveed Ali, was picked up; his whereabouts are since unknown.

She maintained that she later received a call from someone who demanded to be paid a bribe if she wanted her son to be released or her son would be killed in a fake encounter. Then on December 27, Nadra maintained that law enforcers carried out a second raid at her house and took away her other son, Syed Munif Ali. After being kept in an unlawful detention of two months, he was reported by the SSP West to have been killed in a police encounter in Manghopir area on February 24, along with another man identified as, Faizullah.

The petitioner’s counsel requested for a judicial commission to be set up to probe the killing of Syed Munif Ali and Faizullah in a fake police encounter. Police’s investigation officer submitted that efforts were being made to trace the whereabouts of the woman’s son abducted on December 23.

SHC’s division bench headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto directed the JIT to investigate the killing of petitioner’s son and submit a report by October 12. The court also directed the additional advocate general to file his comments regarding the matter of a judicial commission being constituted to probe the extra judicial killing of Syed Munif Ali.

Rights activist’s detention

The SHC issued notices to the federal and provincial law officers, IG Sindh and others and called their comments on September 20 on a petition against alleged detention of civil rights activist by law enforcement agencies’ personnel.

Petitioner Sughra Sario submitted that her spouse Punhal Khan Sario, a rights activist and convener of the Voice for Missing Persons of Sindh, was allegedly picked up by LEAs on August 3, from Qasimabad area in Hyderabad a day before he was to hold a rally for recovery of Sindh’s missing persons.

The petitioner’s counsel filed an application for urgent hearing of the petition and submitted that neither the police, nor the law enforcement agencies were disclosing whereabouts of the detainee. The family was also not being provided with details of the cases for which he was picked up. He requested the court to direct the police and law enforcement agencies to produce the detainee and provide details of cases if any pending against him.