KARACHI: The family of notorious Lyari gangland figure Uzair Jan Baloch has approached the Sindh High Court against the conviction handed down to him by a military court.

His mother, Razia Begum, petitioned the SHC and submitted that the custody of her son was sent back to the Karachi prison in the first week of April after he was reportedly convicted by the military court.

The petitioner contended that Uzair was picked up by personnel of law enforcement agencies in January 2016 and was booked and charge-sheeted in over 50 cases pending trial before the antiterrorism courts.

She further submitted that Uzair was handed over by the central prison on April 12, 2017 to the military authorities to face trial for his involvement in espionage activities and working for foreign intelligence agencies.

She submitted that applications had been sent to the military and prisons authorities for providing a copy of the military court proceedings. The copy of the judgement and record of the proceedings were, however, not provided to the petitioner.

The petitioner’s counsel contended that his client’s son was convicted without jurisdiction and cogent evidence and he had the right for fair trial and legal right to appeal against his conviction as provided in the Constitution.

Through the counsel, she asked the court to set aside the military court conviction and also sought direction for the military authorities to produce the judgement and record of the proceedings before the SHC.

Uzair Baloch was detained under a 90-day preventive detention by the Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, and then handed over to the police following his mysterious arrest in January 2016. In April 2017, the army announced that it had taken his custody in connection with charges of “espionage”.

Uzair Baloch has been facing over 50 cases, including the brutal murder of his arch-rival Arshad Pappu, before antiterrorism and sessions courts.

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2020