PESHAWAR, July 6: A Peshawar High Court bench on Tuesday set aside a judgment of a senior civil judge in which three officials of the UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) had been declared immune from legal process in a civil suit.

The member bench comprising Justice Nasirul Mulk and Justice Ijazul Hassan accepted a civil appeal filed by a former resettlement case worker of the UNHCR, Ghalib Baryali, and sent the case back to the civil court with a direction to decide it on merit.

In its detailed judgment released here, the bench ruled that the impugned order had been passed in haste without applying judicial mind. The appeal was decided a few days ago.

Ghalib Baryali has charged three officials of the commission - regional head of UNHCR Ms Masti Notez, Security In-charge Jan Fischer and another official Ms Shahnaz Parveen - of keeping surveillance on his house, trespassing and harassment.

He had filed a suit against three of them seeking damages on account of mental torture, agonies and defamation amounting to one million dollars. The senior civil judge had rejected the suit on Sept 5, 2003, under Order VII Rule 11 of Civil Procedure Code on the ground that the court had no jurisdiction in the matter.

The appellant counsel, Syed Asif Ali Shah, stated that the impugned order was passed in view of the application moved by the public prosecutor, who was not even a party to the suit, and had no locus standi.

He contended that the presence of the three defendants had not been procured and no written statement had come on file. Nobody represented the UNHCR before the high court as the officials were claiming immunity in the light of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the Untied Nations adopted by the General Assembly on Feb 13, 1946.

They claimed that unless UN Secretary-General waive immunity of the three people they could not be prosecuted. Syed Asif Ali Shah asked whether officials of the United Nations were immune from killing any person or house trespassing in their personal capacity.

He referred to Section 18 of the Convention, arguing that officials of the UN were immune from legal process in respect of words spoken or written and all acts performed by them in their official capacity and not in their personal capacity.

He argued that under Section 20 of the Convention privileges and immunities were granted to officials in the interests of the UN and not for the personal benefit of individuals themselves.

The appellant, resident of Gulshanabad Colony, Arbab Road, has claimed that Ms Notez was having some grudge against him due to which they were not in good terms with each other. He stated that on her directives the surveillance of his residence was started from the nearby residence of Ms Shahnaz, who was his neighbour and was also working in the UNHCR.

The plaintiff stated that when he came to know about that act of the defendants he sent a complaint to the Inspector-General Office in Geneva over which an inquiry was started.

He said that on May 25, 2003, Jan Fischer forced his way into his residence and started quarrelling with him. He added that he was hit with fists and blows by the said defendant.