HYDERABAD, Oct 29: Mr Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali of the Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit bench, on Monday issued notices to the SSPs of Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas and two other police officials for Nov 8 to file their comments on a constitutional petition, praying for registration of a case against an ASI and a police constable of the Tando Allahyar police station.

The court called for comments from the SSPs, ASI, and a constable. The AAG has also been put on notice.

The petitioners, M Farooque and M Shahid, filed the petition through Advocate Qurban Ali H. Chohan.

The petitioners claimed that on the cusp of Oct 17 and 18 a police party of ASI Riaz Soomro along with some police officials trespassed into the house of one M Farooque, terrorized his family and threatened them of dire consequences.

He added that when Mr Farooque’s father, Abdul Razzaq, asked the police as to why they had come to his house they said that they wanted to arrest M Shahid and M Ashfaque.

It was claimed in the petition that the police officials used abusive language against the womenfolk, and left the house after they did not find the men they were looking for.

The police officials claimed that if the two wanted persons did not surrender to the police they would be implicated in false criminal cases and that if the petitioner’s family complained to any of the high officials of the police it would not be in their interest.

The next day on Oct 21, the petitioners said, the ASI along with other policemen raided the residence of M Shahid in Gharibabad, Mirpurkhas, to arrest him.

The family raised hue and cry attracting the attention of the area people.

The petitioners said that the police also threatened the residents that if they dared intervene their fate would not be different to that of the petitioners’ family members.

Both the petitioners claimed to have contacted the SSPs of Mirpurkhas and Hyderabad but failed to get in touch with any of them. They sent telegrams to President Pervez Musharraf, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Sindh governor, and the chief justice of the Sindh High Court, apprising them of the facts.

The petitioners stated that the mood of the ASI indicated that he would arrest them whenever he found the opportunity.

The petitioners’ lawyer has argued in the petition that the raiding police party had violated sections 103 Cr.PC, 506(2), 324 PPC, and also 220 PPC and articles 4, 8, 9, 10, 15, and 25 of the constitution of Pakistan.

He has requested the court to direct both the SSPs and the DIG, Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas range, to order registering of an FIR against the policemen, who should also be restrained from causing humiliation and harassment.

The petitioners have also requested the court to order the police officials to pay Rs200,000 as compensation to the family members for terrorizing them, and the cost of the petition — Rs100,000 — be recovered from the pocket of the policemen.