PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Friday granted interim bail to 16 doctors and paramedics arrested under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance, and asked them to produce good conduct bonds.

A bench consisting of Chief Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Abdul Shakoor directed the detainees to furnish two surety bonds valuing Rs50,000 each.

It also asked them to produce bonds declaring that they will perform duty in the notified hours and will not instigate other employees to hamper work otherwise order for their interim bail will stand cancelled.

Asks FIA to probe their manhandling by police

The bench took notice of the use of teargas shells against and baton-charging of health professionals by the police at the Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar,

on Sept 27 and directed the director general of Federal Investigation Agency to hold an inquiry into the matter within 15 days.

It directed the additional registrar (judicial) of the court to procure that report within the given time and fix the case along with relevant matters immediately after that.

The bench was hearing three petitions against the Sept 27 detention orders issued by Peshawar’s deputy commissioner for several doctors and paramedics under Section 3 of MPO.

One petition was jointly filed by 15 detainees, including Syed Roaidar Shah, Dr Alamgir Yousafzai and others, the second by detainee Shamsul Arifeen, and the third by Dr Ruzat Shah, who requested the court to stop the government from arresting him on the DC’s orders.

The detainees requested the court to order their release by declaring the detention orders illegal and stop the government from re-arresting them in another case registered at the Khan Raziq Shaheed Police Station.

The bench observed that the police had handled the employees of LRH and health department in a brutal and uncivilised manner raising questions.

It added that though negotiations were under way between the government and doctors/paramedics, the visitors were denied health services, which was an act of misconduct under the Essential Services Act.

“By no stretch of imagination, an employee can refuse to perform his duties and that too, in health sector but the way they were handled/ tackled ruthlessly and inhumanly is not at all acceptable: in view of which, without touching merits of the case and in order to see the true picture, we refer the matter to Director General FIA to conduct inquiry in the matter and to submit his report within 15 days positively,” it ruled.

Lawyers Abdul Lateef Afridi, Shabbir Hussain Gigyani, Fida Gul, Abid Ali Khan, Mohammad Rafique Mohmand, Daris Khan and Ismail Mohmand appeared for the petitioners.

Provincial advocate general Shumail Ahmad Butt said the detainees had been instigating and forcing other employees to observe strike in government hospitals.

He said the petitioners had violated Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and damaged public property during demonstration.

Mr Butt said some detainees were arrested few years ago as well for creating unrest in hospitals and got their release after formally promising good conduct in future but they didn’t fulfil the promise.

The lawyers for petitioners said their clients were law-abiding citizens and were loyal to the state.

They said detention orders for petitioners violated the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution.

The counsel said the department could initiate departmental proceedings against officials over misconduct but in no way, they could be deprived of their liberty, movement and expression guaranteed under the Constitution.

Published in Dawn, October 5th, 2019