HYDERABAD: SHC takes suo motu notice of bails - Case of deaths caused by polluted water
By Our Correspondent
HYDERABAD, June 28: Justice Azizullah M. Memon of the Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit bench, on Monday took suo motu notice of the grant of bail to three government officials booked in the case of water-related deaths.
He sought record and proceedings of the case from the concerned court which were submitted before his court. He took the notice after press reports that Rs100,000 each pre-arrest bail for former chief engineer, Sukkur Barrage, Ghulam Nabi Mughal; former director-general, Hyderabad Development Authority, Ali Ahmed Lund; and former, EDO, health, Hyderabad, Dr Agha Tariq, had been confirmed by the sixth additional district judge here on Friday.
The officials face a case of deaths caused by consumption of highly contaminated water supplied to Hyderabad district during May. The then managing director of the Water and Sanitation Agency, Kafeel Ahmed Khanzada, is co-accused in the case.
Mr Mughal and Mr Tariq were earlier granted protective bails by the Sindh High Court's principal seat in Karachi. The Market police on June 3 lodged a case against the officials on the complaint of SHO Rao Mohammad Amir Iqbal under sections 316, 270 and 166 of the PPC and 337 (j) of the Qisas and Diyat Ordinance.
The case was lodged under the directives of the then Sindh chief secretary Dr Mutawakal Kazi after the then Sindh chief minister, Ali Mohammad Mahar, asked him to conduct an inquiry and submit his findings.
The findings have not yet been made public despite the fact that sixth additional district judge had repeatedly directed investigation officer Amir Hafeez Kakakhel to bring the report of Mr Kazi on record.
The court was told that a letter had been written to Mr Kazi but he had not furnished the report to police so far. It is pertinent to mention here that Sindh health secretary Ashiq Memon on June 5 had formed a committee to monitor the water supply.
The committee was to be notified by the Sindh chief secretary and supposed to meet every week to take stock of situation. However, so far neither the notification has been issued and nor details of any weekly meeting are available.
Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim has suspended provincial irrigation secretary Bashir Dahar and ordered an inquiry against him, saying that he would himself conduct the inquiry.
No details of the inquiry are available although the CM had reiterated on Sunday that the inquiry was in progress. On May 15 the irrigation officials released contaminated water of the Manchhar Lake in the River Indus through Aral Wah resulting in countless cases of gastroenteritis and diarrhoea in Hyderabad district.
A total number of 42 persons, most of them infants, had died due to consumption of contaminated water. A compensation of Rs200,000, announced for the heirs of each victim by the provincial government, has not been paid to heirs of all the deceased so far as record is being prepared.
