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KARACHI, Dec 29: The Sindh High Court on Friday ordered the release of four interned immigrants of a family claiming Pakistani citizenship against the security of over Rs 5.6 million repatriated by them from the United Arab Emirates.
Petitioner Sana, married to M. Iqbal Bawany of Karachi, Mohammad Afzal, his wife Rehana and son Mohammad Fazal said the entire proceeds from the sale of their assets were deposited in their account in the Pakistan Chowk branch of a Pakistani bank.
They said they left India for the UAE 14 years ago disposing of their property there and came over to Pakistan in 2000 and were living here since on extended visa. The interior ministry, however, rejected their citizenship plea and they were interned by the special branch police for deportation to India within a month.
Deputy Attorney-General Akhter Ali Mahmud informed the bench seized of the family’s petition that the interior ministry declined their registration for confidential reasons. The bench, which consisted of Justices Mushir Alam and Amir Hani Muslim, observed that nothing was so confidential as to be kept secret from constitutional courts and asked the law officer to apprise it of the reasons of the rejection of the petitioners’ plea on the next date.
Additional Advocate-General M. Ahmed Pirzada informed the bench that the police acted on instructions from the interior ministry.
The bank was asked to keep the amount of Rs 5.6 million deposited by the petitioners as security for their release. The petitioners were asked to register with the police head office and the Bihar Colony police station in whose jurisdiction they were living.
Petitioner Sana says that she became a Pakistani citizen by marrying a Pakistani relative while Afzal says that he and his father were born in Pakistan but he was sent to India to look after the property of their extended family. His wife and son claim Pakistani citizenship on the basis of Afzal’s nationality.
BANK RESTRAINED: The bench, meanwhile, restrained a bank from employing coercive measures to recover any amount from petitioner Hasan Raza on account of his credit card spending.
The petitioner submitted through Advocate Minhaj Farroqui that he lost his credit card and informed the bank within half an hour.
A transaction amounting to Rs 1000 had already been made by that time. However, subsequently, the bank claimed Rs another 60,000 on account of three transactions made subsequent to his report.
The bench ordered that notices be issued to the respondent bank and the State Bank a date in office.
IGP SUED: The SHC office, meanwhile, issued summons to the IGP and three police officials who have been cited as defendants by Syed Mazhar Ali in his suit for damages amounting to Rs1,000 million for malicious prosecution.
The plaintiff submitted through Advocate Nasir Maqsood that the defendants implicated him in a bogus criminal case registered at the Shah Latif police station and did not discharge him from the case even when they were told that he was not the accused named in the FIR.
He said he was manhandled during the proceedings, which ultimately resulted in his honourable acquittal after causing him mental agony and loss of reputation. The defendants were, therefore, liable to pay him damages as claimed.
The office asked the defendants to file their written statement by January 18, 2007.
