HYDERABAD: A division bench of Sindh High Court’s Hyderabad bench comprising Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto and Justice Rashida Asad on Wednesday issued notices to the police, civil administration and private respondents on a petition seeking an inquiry into alleged desecration of graves in Sann town of Jamshoro district a few days ago.

The notices have also been issued to the deputy attorney general, additional advocate general and additional prosecutor general for Oct 21.

The petition was filed by Sameena Kanwal Mallah, Arshad Mallah and Ali Raza Mallah through Advocate Roshan Azeem Mallah.

According to the petitioners, they saw the report on the social media and print media suggesting that Zafar Ali Shah, Malook Shah, Chuttal Rahupoto and Mavo Palijo had dug graves of seven female and six male dead in Pir Hyder Shah Sunai graveyard in Sann town of Sehwan taluka in Jamshoro district. They said these people took out human remains and threw them outside the graveyard “with intention to occupy the land of graves by committing a heinous crime”.

They said that on Sept 24, an FIR (No. 17/21) was lodged at the Chachar police station under section 297 of the Pakistan Penal Code against the said respondents and others but police didn’t arrest a single suspect nominated in the FIR. The petitioners feared for bloodshed over the issue.

They prayed the court to order a judicial inquiry into matter.

Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2021