PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Thursday sought replies from the federal defence and interior secretaries and several high-ups of provincial government in 51 fresh habeas corpus petitions related to “enforced disappearances” as the phenomenon continued to persist despite displeasure shown by the court in the past.

A two-member bench comprising Chief Justice Mian Fasihul Mulk and Justice Mussarat Hilali fixed March 25 for the next hearing after preliminary hearing of these cases and put on notice the federal secretaries of ministries of defence and interior; the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial police officer; the provincial home secretary and the additional chief secretary Fata.

While around 450 habeas corpus petitions mostly filed by relatives of “missing persons” have already been pending before the court, it continues to receive more petitions on regular basis.

One of these petitions was filed by a resident of Hangu named Abdul Samad challenging the alleged illegal detention of his father, Qaziur Rehman. The petitioner stated that he along with his father was stopped at Doaba Check post by military officials for routine checking on Jan 13, 2014.

However, he stated that he was asked to leave whereas his father was taken away. He alleged that his father was taken into custody by a colonel and a captain of Pakistan Army and was taken to Tall Garrison and since then his whereabouts were not known.

Another petition is filed on behalf of a “missing person” Sabar Lal by his relatives. Advocate Ameenur Rehman represented the petitioner and contended that a brother of the petitioner named Lal Badshah was killed in a bomb blast on Pandu Road on Dec 31, 2013.

He stated that the petitioner went to Lady Reading Hospital for collecting the body of his brother and from there he went missing. He added that his family members suspected that he was taken away by the intelligence agencies. He added that the detainee was a resident of Ashrafia Colony in Peshawar.

Similarly, another petition is related to the disappearance of an Afghan national, Haji Nazeer, who has been missing since July 16, 2012. His relatives claimed that he had been residing in Taxila and had gone to Peshawar from where he went missing. They suspected that he was taken away by the law enforcing agencies.

The lawyers appearing for the petitioners contended that under the law they had to be produced before the court, but the authorities who had taken them into custody had not complied with the law.

From time to time the high court continued to issue directives to different authorities for resolving the phenomenon of “enforced disappearances” but the issue continued to persist.

The former chief justice of the court, Justice Dost Mohammad Khan, who has recently been elevated to the Supreme Court, had on several occasions directed the interior and defence ministries to divide the detainees into different categories.