KARACHI, Sept 24: The Sindh High Court adjourned on Monday its suo motu inquiry into the May 12 incidents in the city to Oct 22 to enable the advocate-general, who has recently resumed office after long leave, and other lawyers to go through over 2,000 affidavits submitted by the eyewitnesses and those affected.

The proceedings began amidst unprecedented security measures taken by the administration in consultation with the SHC registrar. Traffic police barriers and containers were placed all around the court and scanners installed within the compound. Lawyers, litigants, media people and visitors carrying passes were allowed entry after scanning and a body search by metal detectors at two points.

A court official allowed admission to the courtroom where the seven-member bench seized of the inquiry was to assemble. The deponents kept standing outside the SHC building in front of the passport office.

As soon as the bench assembled, Advocate-General Anwar Mansoor Khan rose to ‘earnestly’ request adjournment as he needed time to go through the entire record of proceedings along with thousands of affidavits filed recently to understand ‘what the whole thing is about’ and prepare his brief.

He said he had asked the deponents to stay away till their affidavits had been examined.

The bench observed that it was not bound to take into consideration each and every affidavit. The office would first sort them out. In any case, provincial government special counsel Raja Qureshi could resume his arguments from where he left them off on Sept 10, the previous date of hearing. Raja Qureshi said he would also be better prepared to argue after examining the newly-submitted affidavits. All of them may not be relevant but the irrelevant ones could be discarded only after scrutiny. Other lawyers, including Additional Advocate-General Masood A. Noorani, also called for adjournment, particularly in view of aitkaf during Ramazan and Eid holidays.

Strongly opposing the adjournment request, Sindh High Court Bar Association President Abrar Hasan said scrutiny of affidavits was no ground for adjournment. They may be kept in a separate file and may be perused in the course of proceedings. The lawyers have filed their affidavits and the all the pleadings have been filed. The bench has only to determine the parameters.

Advocate Qureshi produced the official close-circuit television footage of the May 12 events. Amicus curiae Qazi Faez Isa complained that ‘the other side’ had not furnished a copy to him. Advocate Iqtidar A. Hashmi pointed that the amicus curiae was acting as a prosecutor and that ‘we are not the other side’ as there should be no sides in the suo motu proceedings. Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany, who heads the bench, reminded the counsel that the proceedings were not adversarial. City government counsel Habibur Rehman expressed his full confidence in the bench, prompting Qazi Faez to say that ‘the certification’ amounted to contempt.

Raja Qureshi said he had submitted the original CCTV footage as directed and had no copies available. A copy would cost about $100, he said. The bench asked the office to release the footage for the purpose of making DVDs. It asked Qazi Isa to continue assisting the court.

Adjourning the proceedings, the bench ordered that the affidavits be placed on record and the advocates may examine them in office. Besides Justice Osmany, the bench consists of Justices Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Mushir Alam, Azizullah M. Memon, Khilji Arif Hussain, Maqbool Baqar and Ali Sain Dino Metlo.