KARACHI, Feb 9: The Sindh High Court on Friday directed its office to provide to the Anti-terrorism Court Karachi a copy of the trial court proceeding files (R&P) pertaining to the hostage-taking case registered against Sardar Akhtar Mengal, chief of the Balochistan National Party and a former chief minister of Balochistan.

An SHC division bench, comprising Justice Musheer Alam and Justice Mohammad Afzal Soomro, issued the directive on an application filed by the

ATC Karachi. Representing the state, AAG Habib Ahmed prayed to the court that the R&P of the said case was required by the ATC for conducting the trial.

Akhter Mengal was declared proclaimed offender by an ATC on July 11, 2006 in the case and is now facing the trial for allegedly kidnapping two army personnel, holding them hostage and subjected them to torture at his house in Darakhshan area of Karachi on April 5, 2006.

Files of the trial court proceedings record were submitted to the SHC for hearing of a petition filed against conviction of Mengal’s four servants in the same case.

On December 9, 2006, the servants, Nasrullah Mengal, Ghulam Hyder Langah alias Chappar, Mehboob Ali Satti and Ghulam Qadir, were sentenced to an aggregate 45-year sentence.

Notice issued: A division bench of the Sindh High Court, comprising Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany and Justice Ali Sain Dino Metlo, on Friday issued notice to the deputy director, Immigration, FIA Passport Cell, for February 14 on a petition filed against detention of a woman by FIA officials.

Petitioner Kamal Shah Agha submitted that FIA officials detained his aunt, Dam Bibi, at Karachi airport on January 31, 2007 on her arrival after performing Haj on suspicion of being an Afghan national. He maintained that she was a Pakistani national and a resident of Chaman, Balochistan, but she could not speak Urdu.—PPI