KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Wednesday suspended till June 29 the order of a judicial magistrate regarding exhumation of the body of television personality and MNA Dr Amir Liaquat Hussain.

A division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Junaid Ghaffar also issued notices to the Sindh chief secretary, health secretary, a medical board constituted to exhume the body and other respondents for the next hearing.

Two children of the late MNA, who was found dead at his Karachi residence on June 9, moved SHC against the June 18 order of a judicial magistrate (East) passed on an application of a citizen.

Advocate Zia Awan, the lawyer for the petitioners, contended that the magistrate was misdirected in passing the impugned order inasmuch as the application, filed by a citizen, was not maintainable as he was a stranger to these proceedings.

He said the petitioners and the family of the deceased had never requested for conducting an autopsy at the time of burial.

He argued that though a notice was issued to the petitioners, no proper opportunity was provided and only verbal arguments were heard, which had not been responded to in the impugned order.

The counsel stated that the impugned order did not fall within the ambit of Section 176(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code and therefore was liable to be set aside.

He submitted that a medical board was being constituted, thus pleaded for passing an ad-interim order.

“Let notice be issued to respondents as well Advocate General Sindh and Prosecutor General Sindh for 29.06.2022. Till then, the impugned order dated 18.06.2022 shall remain suspended,” the bench in its order said.

Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2022