LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Wednesday dismissed as withdrawn a habeas corpus petition challenging the detention of Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Maulana Khadim Hussain Rizvi, his son Saad Rizvi and TLP patron-in-chief Pir Afzal Qadri.

As the court resumed hearing, a provincial law officer presented a notification issued under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance 1960 for a 30-day detention of the TLP leaders.

Justice Syed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi observed that the habeas corpus petition stood infructuous in the presence of the government notification.

At this, petitioner’s counsel Nabeel Javed Kahloon sought court’s permission to withdraw the petition, which was duly granted.

The judge dismissed the petition as withdrawn.

Advocate Kahloon told media persons that a fresh petition would be filed soon challenging the notification issued by the government for the detention of the TLP leaders.

Syed Zafar Hussain Gilani, a member of the TLP, had assailed the detention of his leaders in a habeas corpus petition. He contended that the police barged in the houses of the TLP leaders, arrested them unlawfully and shifted them to undisclosed places.

He stated that the home department and the police, despite repeated requests, had not issued any grounds for their detention nor informed about their whereabouts.

The petitioner submitted that no FIR or complaint had been lodged against the TLP leaders so far. He argued that the detainees had been arrested without any prior notification and without giving any opportunity of hearing, which was a violation of fundamental rights guaranteed in the Constitution.

Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2018