PESHAWAR, Oct 31: Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Dost Mohammad Khan questioned on Thursday the release of Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and said the federal government had no powers to set a prisoner free without an approval by the court concerned.

During the hearing of a case relating to enforced disappearances, the chief justice observed that neither the prime minister nor the president had the powers to release a prisoner through an executive order. “How Mullah Baradar could be released without approval of a court,” he asked.

It was also not clear under what charges he had been arrested and whether or not he had been produced before any court, he said, adding that the government might have succumbed to foreign pressure.

On Sep 21, the government announced that it had released Mullah Baradar, who was arrested in Karachi in Feb 2010. The Afghan government wanted his release because he would play an important role in peace talks with the Taliban.

Chief Justice Dost Mohammad said a conspiracy was being hatched by a foreign intelligence agency, with the connivance of local agencies, against the superior judiciary to create rift among judges. “Such conspiracies cannot succeed as the judges only fear Almighty Allah and not any individual,” he said.

The high court had issued a judgment declaring US drone strikes in tribal areas as illegal, but it had not been implemented, Justice Dost Mohammad said. The issue had been raised at international level, but despite having the capability to shoot down drones, the government was taking no step to stop these attacks.

“The United States will continue to carry out these strikes as long as the Pakistan establishment remains dependent on its aid,” the chief justice said, adding that if the government did not raise voice against drone strikes, the US would start targeting settled districts as well.