HYDERABAD, March 8: The Sindh High Court on Friday served a notice on an officer of the Motorway police for allegedly harassing a man.

The notice was served on Babar Mushtaq, senior patrolling officer (administration), and the additional advocate-general of Sindh to appear on March 19 in a constitutional petition, filed by the Sindh-wide private transport labour employees union through its president, Mohammad Nasir.

The respondents in the case include the IG, Motorway Police, Islamabad, the DIG, Motorway police, Karachi, the SPO (administration) and SPO.

The petitioner claimed that around 2,000 workers were associated with the union and charged that the respondent SPOs resorted to unlawful measures for taking bribes and harass the drivers and conductors, who refuse to entertain their demands, including impounding busses and torturing them.

He added that drivers were also arrested in false cases.

The petitioner claimed that on Jan 11 both the respondent SPOs had stopped a bus (JA-9748), driven by the petitioner himself, conducted search and when nothing was recovered they tortured the driver and challaned the bus for carrying passengers in dangerous position.

He said that the respondents had also snatched the driving license from the petitioner and asked him to collect the same from the Motorway police station located at Nooriabad. He claimed that the TPO, Gadap, in a separate inquiry, had held an official of the Motorway police, Malik Khalid, guilty of an unlawful act.

He accused the respondents of misusing their authority and prayed the court to declare the act of respondent SPOs illegal and malafide besides praying the court to direct the respondent SPOs to return his license.

He also requested the court to direct IG of the Motorway police to restrain his subordinates from harassing the petitioner.