UMERKOT: Chief Jus­tice of Sindh High Court on Friday took suo motu notice of a report about a lady doctor and a female paramedic who accused Umerkot court staff and police of subjecting them to torture and humiliation on the court premises a day before, according to sources.

The chief justice also sought report from the district and sessions judge about the incident after videos of the victims narrating their ordeal went viral on social and electronic media and accounts were published in newspapers.

The victims, Dr Kiran and Tejan, a paramedic at Umerkot Civil Hospital, told a press conference here on Thursday that police picked them up from their homes and took them to Judicial Complex where the law enforcers along with Akbar Rahimoon, superintendent of the district court, abused, humiliated and tortured them in the courtroom as a ‘punishment’ for their refusal to visit the residence of the civil judge to see his ailing son.

Advocate Zulfiqar Gajoo, general secretary of Umer­kot District Bar Association (DBA), said the bar had passed a resolution at a meeting, demanding inq­uiry into the incident by an SHC judge himself because they had reservations over the appointment of district and sessions judges probing the incident. A lawyers’ delegation would meet the chief justice soon in this regard, he said.

Advocate Shoukat Rahi­moon of Mirpurkhas DBA condemned the court incident and said that courtrooms were a place where justice was served to the wronged. It was very unfortunate that judicial staff had violated the court’s sanctity by victimising innocent persons on the court premises, he said.

Meanwhile, members of Pakistan Medical Associ­ation Umerkot chapter and paramedical association took out a rally from the Civil Hospital to the press club after having boycotted duties of outpatient department.

The protesters led by Dr Jam Kumbhar, medical superintendent of Civil Hospital, Dr Kiran, Dr Lela Pardeep and Asif Janjhi demanded justice for their colleagues.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2017