KARACHI, Jan 17: The Sindh High Court on Thursday issued notices to the home secretary, provincial police chief and others in a petition against the sealing of a house where a relative of the Shahzeb murder prime suspect had lived on rent.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice Mushir Alam also issued a notice to the provincial law officer and put off the hearing to Jan 24. The bench also directed its office to club together other identical petitions filed by relatives of Shahrukh Jatoi, the prime suspect.

Mukhtar Ahmed, a retired brigadier, submitted in his petition that the police had sealed his house, 177, 34th Street, DHA-6, where Zeeshan Jatoi was living on rent. He stated that he had rented out his property to Zeeshan Jatoi through a tenancy agreement on Jan 23, 2010.

The petitioner stated that an FIR (591/12) was registered on Dec 12 against two suspects –– Nawab Siraj Talpur and Shahrukh Jaoti –– for committing a murder. He stated that the police sealed his house illegally as neither he nor his tenant was named in the FIR.

The petitioner stated that the police conducted raids on several houses and offices of his tenant, his family and other relatives in connection with the murder case. He said he was not wanted in any other FIR or ancillary investigation. He said the respondents also illegally raided and sealed his property which was in the possession of his tenant.

Mr Ahmed further stated that the tenant had now fled the premises and was no longer his tenant, but the respondents were not de-sealing his property.

The petitioner further submitted that the respondents sealed his property without taking recourse to the provisions contained in Sections 87 and 88 of the Criminal Procedure Code which provided that only the property of an absconder be attached.The petitioner requested the court to direct the respondents to de-seal his property.