HYDERABAD, July 20: Justice Ghulam Rabbani of Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit bench, here on Friday issued notices to the SHOs of Sakhipir and Husri police stations and the Additional Advocate General, Sindh, on a constitutional petition filed by a retired junior government officer of Pakistan Steel Mills, Karachi, Ghulam Mohammad Panhwar.

The petitioner has sought registration of criminal case against certain police officials who, he claimed, had kept him in unlawful detention and subjected him to physical and mental torture.

Hearing of the petition has been fixed for July 24.

The petitioner has cited as accused the DPO (investigation), Abdul Sattar Detho, the DSP (investigation), Anwar Lakho, the DSP (investigation), Aftab Ahmed Halepoto, the Inspectors (investigation) Lutufullah Lakho and Mohammad Younus Jat, the SHOs of Husri and Sakhipir police stations and some other police officials.

He has claimed a compensation of five million rupees for the mental and physical torture he suffered during the detention and registration of case against the accused.

The petitioner has claimed that the police were victimizing him after a case of illegal detention of his brother and son was disposed of by the SHC on Feb 10, 1999. Both the detainees were freed, he recalled.

It was the filing of the case that had annoyed the concerned police officials of Badin district as well as of Hyderabad district, said Mr Panhwar.

He claimed that the kidnapping of eminent surgeon, Dr Mohammad Hussain Leghari, provided the accused a chance to implicate him in false cases. He further claimed that the DPOs, Sattar Detho and Anwar Lakho, called him at a police station on April 23 and handed over to the DSP, Aftab Halepoto. He said that he was subjected to severe torture and harassment by the Inspector, Younus Jatt, from April 23 to 30.

The petitioner claimed that he had been kept at the Market, Baldia and Sakhipir police stations where he was given electric shocks and not produced before any magistrate.

He alleged that he was offered his release on payment of Rs100,000.

On May 1, he said, he was handed over to Husri police. The SHO, Gul Hassan Unnar and Inspector, Ali Bakhsh Shar, demanded Rs15,000 for his release, he added.

The petitioner told the court that his son, Jawed, was called to the police station to be conveyed the message with threat that his father (the petitioner) would be implicated in false cases if the bribe was not paid.

Mr Panhwar informed the court that he had remained a grade-16 official and said that his efforts to lodge an FIR against the respondents had failed.