Security agencies have failed to protect citizens: IHC Justice Kayani

• IHC irked over concerned officers' unpreparedness 
• Justice Kayani remarks inability to recover missing shows government's incompetence

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court on Monday issued notices to the home and defense secretaries, and former inspector-general of police Aamir Zulfiqar Khan in a missing person’s case.

A single-member bench presided over by Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani was hearing a petition filed by Zainab Zaeem Khan, wife of Abdullah Omar, who has been missing since June 2015.

During the hearing, the judge was irked by the unpreparedness of concerned officers and warned of action against the home secretary and the present Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Qazi Jamilur Rehman.

Justice Kayani observed that the inability to recover missing persons showed incompetence of the government and the State. “Islamabad Police can only stop petty crimes," he remarked, adding that recovering missing persons was not their cup of tea.

The judge remarked that security agencies have failed to protect citizens and issued notices to home and defense secretaries and former IGP of Islamabad Police.

The hearing has been adjourned till January 19.

Also read: IHC issues non-bailable arrest warrants for Nawaz Sharif

Case background

In 2018, the same bench had imposed a Rs2 million fine on the secretaries of defence and interior, inspector general of Islamabad police and members of a joint investigation team (JIT) and set a six-month deadline for the recovery of Omar. 

It may be mentioned here that Omar was a suspect in the murder of former federal minister Shahbaz Bhatti and Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali, an FIA prosecutor in the Benazir Bhutto murder case.