KARACHI, April 14: Police pickets set up outside the houses of former Balochistan chief minister Sardar Akhtar Mengal and his brother in Defence had been withdrawn, a provincial law officer informed the Sindh High Court on Friday.

There was no bar on anybody entering or leaving the houses, Additional Advocate-General Sarwar Khan told a division bench, comprising Chief Justice Sabihuddin Ahmed and Justices Mrs Qaiser Iqbal, on Friday noon. He also denied other allegations made by petitioner Mehrullah Mengal, uncle of Akhtar and Jawed Mengal. He said there was no siege of the two houses and pickets were set up only to arrest all the accused in the army personnel hostage taking case.

Earlier in the morning, the the Darakhshan police station SHO appeared along with Assistant Advocate-General Qasim Mir Jat and submitted that there was no police blockade of the two houses at Khayaban-i-Shamsher, Defence, as alleged. The bench asked him to file an affidavit to the effect and gave him an hour’s time to do so.

A bailable warrant to ensure his presence on April 18 was issued following his failure to comply. The warrant was withdrawn when the additional AG appeared along with the Clifton town police officer and made a categoric statement that the entire police contingent posted at the two houses for apprehending the co-accused had been removed.

Representing the petitioner, Advocates Akhtar Hussain and Syed Ghulam Shah stated that the houses were besieged on the night between April 5 and 6. They called for a surprise raid by the SHC nazir. Advocate Ghulam Shah later said the police posted around the two houses had been removed and Akhtar Mengal, who is also president of the Balochistan National Party (BNP), is able to move about freely on Friday afternoon.

The bench adjourned further hearing to April 18. Standing counsel Mahmood Alam Rizvi represented the federal government.

Meanwhile, a petition alleging unlawful arrest and detention of Abdul Rauf Sasoli, deputy secretary-general of Jamhoori Watan Party, was adjourned by another division bench, comprising Justices Ghulam Rabbani and Gulzar Ahmed, due to indisposition of the petitioner’s counsel, Noor Naz Agha.