March 06, 2007	Tuesday	Safar 16, 1428

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window).

ISLAMABAD, March 5: The Lahore High Court on Monday directed the Punjab assistant advocate-general to produce record pertaining to the detention of former ISI operative Khalid Khawaja.

Justice Syed Sajjad Hussain Shah issued the directive on a petition filed by the detainee’s wife, who is also a retired officer of the Inter-Services Intelligence challenging the detention of Mr Khawaja.

The counsel for the detainee, Advocate Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, told the court that the additional district and sessions judge, Nisar Baig, had issued orders for the release on bail of the detainee on February 21 but the government, instead of releasing him, shifted him to a jail in Faisalabad.

The petitioner’s counsel said court orders were not complied with which constituted contempt. After these arguments, the learned judge directed the assistant advocate general, Tanvir Khan, to produce all records regarding detention of Mr Khawaja on Wednesday.

Khalid Khawaja was picked up by personnel of secret agencies on January 26 from a mosque near his G-10 residence. After some days, he was produced in a local court with charges of distributing pamphlets fanning religious hatred and sectarianism.

It is pertinent to mention here that Mr Khawaja was active in the struggle for the release of hundreds of missing people.