PESHAWAR, April 23: The Peshawar district and sessions judge, Hayat Ali Shah, on Wednesday directed the senior superintendent of police (operational) to inform the court about the whereabouts of four boys allegedly kept in illegal detention by the local police for the last four days.

The court issued the directive after the SHO of Gulbahar police station expressed ignorance whether or not the boys in question had been detained.

The court fixed Thursday for the next hearing.

The SHO claimed that he neither knew the detainees nor was aware about their detention.

A habeas corpus application was filed before the court by Advocate Qazi Shamsuddin on behalf of the four boys — Salam and Habib, sons of Abdur Rehman, Sakhi, son of Raheemullah and Shoaib, son of Khan Muhammad.

He stated that the four boys were arrested by the police and till now they had not been produced before any court.

The applicant held that the detainees were neither required in any case nor they had committed any crime.

After the statement of the SHO, the petitioners’ counsel said that a relative of the detainees, Ajmal Khan, had seen them inside the police station, and had also provided them meal. He contended that they were ready to furnish an undertaking about the fact that the boys were last seen at Gulbahar police station.

The court observed that it would be appropriate to issue directives to the SSP (operational), asking him to inform the court whether the boys were in police custody or not.

Meanwhile, the court disposed of another habeas corpus petition pertaining to illegal detention of a boy, Sajid, aged 13, son of Rehmanullah.

The court’s bailiff, who visited the C-Division police station on the court’s directive, informed the court that the detainee was not there.

He stated that the SHO concerned claimed that they had asked the boy to visit the station in connection with a case and after getting information from him he was asked to leave the station. The applicant did not press the application after release of the boy.

In recent days a number of habeas corpus petition have been filed against the police for keeping different persons in illegal detention.