LAHORE: Justice Farooq Haider of the Lahore High Court on Tuesday sent the file of a petition against the detention of Hafiz Saad Rizvi, leader of proscribed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), to the chief justice for a decision whether the case needed to be heard by a single or a division bench.

The petitioner’s counsel said the provincial government, with mala fide intention, extended the detention of Mr Rizvi under section 11 EEE of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997 for another 90 days.

He said the matters relating to the anti-terrorism law were heard by division benches.

The judge sent the file to the chief justice and adjourned further hearing of the petition till Sept 9.

Ameer Hussain, a relative of Rizvi, had filed the petition, saying the detention was extended after a review board of the high court’s judges turned down a government request to extend the detention of Rizvi under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance 1960.

He asked the court to declare the act of the government illegal and order the release of Rizvi.

Rizvi was detained after his organisation (TLP) staged sit-ins across the country demanding the government to expel the ambassador of France in the wake of blasphemous cartoons.

The protesters had turned violent and attacked the police personnel.

STRIKE: The Punjab Bar Council (PbBC) has given a province-level call for strike on Thursday (tomorrow) as a protest against the proposed elevation of a junior judge of the Lahore High Court to the Supreme Court.

The judicial commission also is scheduled to discuss the elevation of Justice Ayesha A. Malik who is fourth in the seniority of the LHC judges.

In a statement on Tuesday, the council condemned the passage of the bill by the National Assembly regarding amendments to the Legal Practitioners & Bar Council Act 1973.

It asked the lawyers to participate in a convention being held in Islamabad on Sept 9.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2021