The Sindh government’s decision to detain Mohajir Qaumi Movement-Haqiqi (MQM-H) chairman Afaq Ahmed under Maintenance of Public Ordinance (MPO) ordinance has created many complications as on July 14 the Sindh High Court (SHC) had ordered that “police shall not arrest nor implicate him [Ahmed] in any other case without informing the court”.
According to the notification issued by the Sindh Home Department, the MQM-H leader was detained for one month, stating that his release may disturb peace in the city. Well-placed sources inside the Sindh Law Department told Pakistan Today that legal experts had already told the provincial government that Ahmed could not be detained legally under MPO due to clear orders from SHC division bench.
“Despite this, the provincial government on directions from the federal government had issued the order to appease Ahmed’s rival party, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). “However, the order [to detain Ahmed] can be challenged in the high court and before the high court declares the order null and void, the government will release the MQM-H leader in the coming days,” the sources said.
It is worth recalling that the Haqiqi chief had prayed before the SHC division bench, including Chief Justice Mushir Alam and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, through his counsel that even after he is released, he may be implicated in other false cases or detained under the MPO due to his political differences with the MQM. However, the bench had noted in the order that “even if such apprehensions [of the applicant] come true, the doors of the court are open to question any action which cannot be justified under the law.”