ISLAMABAD, July 19: The Supreme Court on Thursday admonished the Islamabad police, after noticing some foul play, for still keeping under detention 134 persons who were arrested during the Lal Masjid operation.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Muhammad Nawaz Abbasi and Justice Faqir Muhammad Khokhar found from the police record that the arrested persons were under detention because supplementary documents, bearing anti-dated and allegedly forged evidence, showed that all had criminal history.
“These loose papers in the record prove your act of forgery in the official record,” Justice Faqir Khokhar observed, adding that police were trying to prove that those arrested during the operation were involved in some old cases.
The supplementary record produced before the court showed that these persons were still under detention because of a tip provided by Khalid Khwaja who was recently arrested.
According to record, Khwaja told police that over dozen persons, recently arrested from Lal Masjid, were involved in acts of terrorism as they set on fire a shop of video cassettes.
“We will summon Khalid Khawaja here and record his statement. And if he said that he did not make any statement before you then you will face the music.
“We know how these supplementary documents are prepared for special purposes,” Justice Nawaz Abbasi observed.
The bench also directed the Director-General of National Crisis Management Cell, Brig (retd) Javed Iqbal Cheema, to look into this foul-play.
The bench also ordered the district administration to hand over the body of Hassan Abdul Aziz, son of Maulana Abdul Aziz, to his family so that his burial could be ensured on Friday.
The release of Maulana Abdul Aziz, wife Majida Umme Hassan and two daughters Tayyaba and Asma on parole were also ordered to let them participate in the funeral.
A number of women and men also appeared before the bench with complaints of illegal detention, bogus prosecution and disappearance of their loved-ones.
Many women complained that their spouses had gone to receive their children from the Jamia Hafsa but never came back.