SHC seeks comments on plea against shifting of Uzair Baloch to Rangers’ hostel

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday directed a provincial law officer to file comments on a petition against the shifting of alleged Lyari gangster Uzair Jan Baloch from the Central Jail Karachi to the Rangers’s Meetha Ram Hostel after declaring the latter as a sub-jail.

Petitioner Razia Begum, the mother of Uzair, submitted in the petition that her son was incarcerated in connection with various criminal cases in the central prison through a judicial order.

Her counsel submitted that the additional chief secretary through a notification issued on June 9, 2020, ordered the shifting of Uzair to the Rangers’ hostel.

The lawyer submitted that the impugned notification was issued without approval from a court of law and put the petitioner’s son into the custody of the Rangers. He submitted that the detainee was still facing trial of several criminal cases and he had the right to fair trial.

It was argued that the detainee was a political person who was remanded to the judicial custody by a court of law and therefore, he could not be detained in the custody of the Rangers.

The high court was requested to declare the impugned notification as unlawful and direct the provincial government to transfer the custody of the petitioner’s son from the Meetha Ram Hostel to the central prison.

An additional advocate general sought time to file comments on behalf of the provincial government and other respondents cited in the petition.

A division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Mohammad Iqbal Kalhoro directed the provincial law officer to file comments by April 28 on behalf of the additional chief secretary and others.

It is pertinent to mention that Uzair was sentenced to 12 years in prison by the field general court martial on charges of espionage. The family of Uzair submitted before the court that his arrest was shown in January 2016 by law enforcement agencies and he was booked and chargesheeted in 40 terrorism-related cases that were also pending with anti-terrorism courts. Uzair has been acquitted by trial courts in 17 criminal cases so far for want of evidence.