KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday expressed displeasure over the home department and police for their failure to submit their reply to a petition seeking impartial inquiry into the killings of 250 people in encounters led by suspended Malir Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Rao Anwar.
A division bench was hearing a petition filed by Advocate Muzammil Mumtaz Meo Rajput in which he prayed to the court to constitute a high-profile committee to probe into the killings of 250 persons in ‘fake encounters’ led by Rao Anwar since 1992.
During the hearing, the bench came down hard on the respondents for not submitting their reply and directed them to ensure the submission of their reply by the next hearing.
Earlier, the petitioner had contended that Rao Anwar had been serving as Malir SSP for quite a long period and during his tenure he led hundreds of ‘staged encounters’ but none of them was scrutinised impartially. Rao Anwar had misused his powers, he maintained.
Rajput said that Rao Anwar was often suspended and removed on the charges of staged encounters but no one replaced him.
The suspended Malir SSP landed in hot waters after the alleged extra-judicial killing of 27-year old Naqeebullah Mehsud.