Disappearance of Sajid Gondal: Mazari, Akbar order early recovery of missing SECP official

ISLAMABAD: Top government officials, including the human rights minister and the premier's aide on accountability, on Friday ordered "early recovery" of Sajid Gondal, an official of the Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) who allegedly went missing Thursday evening.

"We as govt have a duty to ensure his early recovery," Mazari said on Twitter, directing the Islamabad police to register a first information report over Gondal's alleged disappearance.

"Protection of each citizen's life is our constitutional obligation," she added, noting that everyone must be dealt with according to the law and the "rule of law must prevail".

Separately, Adviser to Prime Minister Imran Khan on Accountability and Interior, Shahzad Akbar, also directed the Islamabad Capital Territory Police (ITP) to promptly recover the missing SECP official.

Akbar had taken a notice of the reported disappearance, which went viral on social media, a news release said.

In this regard, the Amnesty International's South Asia chapter also released a statement for Gondal, saying "a former journalist and an official with the SECP is missing and feared to have been disappeared".

"We call upon the authorities to establish his whereabouts immediately,"  the human rights organisation added.

SECP ‘assisting’ family

Later, in a statement, the SECP officially confirmed that Sajid Gondal is missing and that the authority is providing "assistance" to the family.

“Muhammad Sajid Gondal, who is working as Additional Joint Director at SECP is missing since last evening. SECP as an institution, expresses its solidarity with his family, and is providing complete assistance to the family in this moment,” read the statement.

“The SECP staff are praying and hoping for an early and safe return of Gondal,” it added.

Petition filed in IHC

Meanwhile, Gondal’s family has filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court seeking the court’s intervention for his recovery.

The petition, filed by his mother, has named secretaries of defence and interior and Islamabad police as respondents.

She has raised concerns that her son could be subjected to mental and physical torture and that the abduction is a violation of his basic constitutional rights.