ISLAMABAD   -   The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Tuesday directed the Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Secretary, Ministry of Defense, the Inspector General of Police, Islamabad and the Director General (FIA) Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to tender appearance in person before the court in a petition, wherein, it had already issued directions to produce social media activist Azhar Mashwani’s missing brothers before the court.

Besides this, the bench also hinted to initiate contempt of court proceedings against them for not producing the two missing professor brothers. 

A single bench of IHC comprising Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb conducted hearing of the the petition filed by the petitioner, Qazi Habib ur Rehman, who is the father of the detenues namely Professor Mazhar- ul-Hassan and Professor Zahoor-ul-Hassan and sought the issuance of a writ of habeas corpus for the recovery of the detenues who have been missing since June 6.

During the hearing, the Assistant Attorney General (AAG) accompanied by the State counsel as well as Lt. Col. Zahid Hussain, Law Officer, Ministry of Defense and Kazim Hussain, Law Officer, ICT Police appeared before the court and they were in unison on their submission that “the whereabouts of the detenues are not known.”

Justice Miangul Hassan said that there was a clear and unequivocal direction given by this court vide order dated 09.08.2024 to the respondents to produce the detenues before this court. 

He added, “Neither has the said order been complied with nor has any document been brought on record to show that any effort was made by the respondents to locate the whereabouts of the detenues.”

“This, in my prima facie view, is contumacious defiance of the direction issued by this Court in its order dated 09.08.2024, warranting proceedings for contempt of Court to be initiated against the respondents. Therefore, I deem it appropriate, to direct the Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Secretary, Ministry of Defense, the Inspector General of Police, Islamabad and the Director General, Federal Investigation Agency to tender appearance in person before this Court on 15.08.2024 and explain as to why proceedings for contempt of Court should not be initiated against them,” maintained the judge. 

He also asked the Attorney-General for Pakistan (AGP) to attend the court on the 15th of August, 2024. In this matter, the petition stated that the detenues’ brother, Azhar Mashwani, is a “human rights and social media activist and focal person of founding Chairman of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi”. 

It added that the detenues have been missing since 06.06.2024. In the instant petition, it has also been pleaded that armed personnel from the Counter Terrorism Department along with intelligence officers in plain clothes had abducted the detenues from their house in Lahore.