ISLAMABAD, April 4: The relatives of London terror suspect Rashid Rauf have moved the Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi bench against an alleged deal between Pakistan and Britain to swap him for some members of the Balochistan Liberation Army.

The petitioners have feared that some secret deal was underway between the two governments for extraditing Rauf to the UK in return for eight members of the BLA who are living in London and are charged with their involvement in Balochistan uprising.

“This is being done despite the fact that the superior court has already exonerated the UK national of Pakistan origin of the charges of his complicity in the bombing of transatlantic airliners in London,” the petition said.

Rauf’s relatives have prayed to the court that they be informed of what deal was going on between the two governments. They said they were not being allowed to meet him nor could his lawyers see the detainee. They termed it illegal and unjustified and requested the court that he be allowed to meet his relatives as well as legal counsel.

The government of Pakistan through the ministry of interior, the foreign office, government of the Punjab and jail authorities have been made respondents in the petition filed by Hashmat Ali Habib Advocate.

The defence counsel has also written to the British government through its high commission in Islamabad to inform him whether they had made any request to the government of Pakistan for the extradition of Rauf.

Meanwhile, the terror suspect was produced before the Anti- Terrorism Court-II Judge Malik Safdar Hussain on Wednesday.

The judge in the last hearing had asked the jail authorities either to produce the detainee or his detention orders through deputy superintendent Adiala Jail.

When the hearing started, Rauf’s lawyer Hashmat Habib Advocate drew the attention of the court towards the absence of his client and pleaded that despite the clear orders of the judge no action had been initiated by jail authorities. After almost two hours, the police finally produced Mr Rashid in tight security.

The defence counsel sought the deferment of the hearing as a petition about the complex nature of the case had been pending with Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi bench.

In the petition, the counsel argued that the case had been made funtus officio after the decision of ATC-II on December 13 wherein the judge dropped the terror charges against the accused and referred the case to the sessions judge for normal trial.

The case took an interesting turn when the Punjab government challenged the orders of the ATC in the higher court directing the ATC to take up the case again setting aside the prior orders of the court. Rauf’s lawyer had pleaded in the petition that the same court could not take one case twice.

The counsel asked the court not to initiate the trial until the pending petition was done away with by the higher court. The judge put off the hearing till April 16.