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KARACHI, Sept 11: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan condemning the murder of a senior lawyer Raja Riaz and the surrounding of the Sindh High Court building has demanded a high-level probe into the incidents.
In a statement issued here on Tuesday, Sindh HRCP chief Zohra Yusuf said the targeted killing of a senior lawyer near the Sindh High Court and Governor’s House, and surrounding of the high court on the same day constituted an attack on the independence of the judiciary.
She said both these incidents proved that the state had failed to deliver its primary duty of protecting the lives of citizens, particularly those vulnerable to violence owing to their profession.
She regretted that in some cases the state and its agencies were directly involved in threatening lawyers. She said this alarming trend was the product of intolerance and lack of respect for the rule of law.
Ms Zohra urged the Sindh government to order a high-level inquiry into the incidents and take measures to prevent such incidents in future.
Security at courts
The Pakistan People’s Party denounced the murder of Advocate Raja Riaz in Karachi and killing of 18 people in the Dera Ismail Khan blast.
PPP’s Central Information Secretary Sherry Rehman said the lawyer’s murder along with a “virtual attack on the Sindh High Court building by a mob of political activists the same day” had brought into question the regime’s commitment to providing security to the judiciary and civilians.
The two incidents, she said, triggered widespread protests, bringing the court proceedings to a halt on Tuesday.
“This is a case of targeted attack since the lawyer was known for his active support to the independence of the judiciary. He was also affiliated with the PPP and his stand was in line with the party’s ideals for an independent and active judiciary,” said Ms Rehman.
She said ‘the harassment spree’ by an unruly mob in the court where the May 12 carnage case was to be heard, coupled with Riaz’s murder near the SHC building, raised questions about the prime responsibility of the government.
“It is reminiscent of the black day of May 12 when scores of gunmen went on a killing spree at the behest of the state, eager to flex its muscle against its own citizens,” she the alleged.
Demanding immediate arrest of the killers of Mr Riaz, Ms Rehman expressed her concern at the lack of security at the high court premises and called for increased security at the courts so that the judiciary could perform its duty.
Sindh PPP Information Secretary MNA Dr Fehmida Mirza condemned the Dera Ismail Khan blast that claimed 18 lives and left many others injured.
Pointing out that such incidents were a constant threat to the country’s stability, she termed it a government’s failure to make a strategy to overcome the extremists and suicide bombers.
