The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has sought a detailed report from the police chiefs of Balochistan, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with respect to the cases registered against Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
Justice Noorul Haq Qureshi remarked “[the] court will proceed ex-parte if detailed reports on cases registered against Lakhvi are not filed by the federation”.
A single bench of the IHC presided over the Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi case on Wednesday. Counsel for the petitioner Raja Rizwan Abbasi and Deputy Attorney General Barrister Jahangir Jadoon appeared in court.
Abbasi told the court that a detailed report with respect to the cases registered against his client had not been filed by the government so far. Every day a new case is instituted by the government against the accused which is illegal. During the previous hearing, directives were issued by the court to the government instructing them to file details of all the cases registered against Lakhvi.
The counsel for the federation told the court that only one report has been filed in court so far wherein it is said that along with the Mumbai attack case, a kidnapping case is also registered against Lakhvi. This report has only been filed by the Punjab government. Detailed reports from other provinces could not be filed in court.
The counsel for the petitioner told the court that the judicial magistrate has issued orders to once again detain his client under 16 MPOs which are being challenged. The court asked the counsel for the federation for a detailed report on the cases against the accused which had not been filed so far.
The counsel for the federation asked the court to give it one week’s time to provide details of cases against Lakhvi. The court, while accepting the plea, ordered the counsel for the federation to file a detailed report before it of all the cases registered against Lakhvi, otherwise it would proceed ex-parte on the next hearing.
The court adjourned for a week.