LAHORE – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday informed the Lahore High Court (LHC) that six Pakistani prisoners were being released from Bagram jail of Afghanistan.
The court was hearing a petition moved by Justice Project for Pakistan (JPP) through Barrister Sarah Belal seeking repatriation of the Pakistanis illegally detained at the Bagram jail.
As court resumed hearing on the petition on Tuesday, a law officer appeared on behalf of the ministry and submitted a report stating that six Pakistanis, of a total of 37, detained at the jail would be soon released. The ministry, however, did not inform the names of the six prisoners and did not give the date of their release.
In her arguments, Sarah Belal said the ministry’s reply showed that Pakistani government had finally committed itself for repatriation six citizens from Bagram jail.
After going through the reply, Justice Muhammad Khalid Mahmood Khan adjourned further hearing until November 15. The JJP filed the petition seeking repatriation of seven Pakistani, later it was revealed that more Pakistanis had been detained there.
Meanwhile, a group of lawyers on Tuesday helped an accused flee after the Lahore High Court rejected his bail plea.
Accused Fiaz Ahmad appeared before the court of Justice Manzoor Ahmad Malik for getting bail in a case of road accident registered against him by the Nankana district police.
An investigation officer told the court that a minor girl namely Misbah had lost her two legs in an accident and now she was a disabled girl. Police and prosecution requested the court to cancel the bail of the accused as a sessions court had already rejected his bail.
The accused counsel, however, opposed the request to reject the bail and argued that he had not intentionally disabled the girl in the accident.
The court heard both parties and rejected the bail application of Fiaz Ahmad.
After this, the police officials arrested the accused and left the courtroom. The counsel of the accused and his associates, however, intercepted the police near exit gate of the LHC and tried to free the accused. The personnel failed to resist the lawyers’ attack and the accused fled from the court.
Also, the LHC on Tuesday directed the petitioner’s counsel to argue on maintainability of the petition seeking directions for Pakistan government to move International Court of Justice against the makers of blasphemous movie in America.
Justice Saghir Ahmed Qadri fixed October 22 for further hearing of the petition. The judge was holding proceeding on a petition filed by Jamatud Dawa chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed.
Advocate AK Dogar, the counsel for petitioner, submitting that US president Obama said in a speech to United Nations general assembly that he condemned the anti-Islam movie but he strongly defended the US constitutional protection of the freedom of expression.
The petitioner said mere denial of the holocaust was a crime in many western countries as a German author and historian Ernst Zundel spent seven years of his life behind the bars for expressing his views about the holocaust.
He further said the foreign policy of Pakistan needs to be restructured and regulated in the light of Article 40 of the Constitution which envisages strengthening bonds with Muslim world and promoting international peace.