Islamabad:

A larger bench of Islamabad High Court (IHC) called on Thursday the legal attorney for Pakistan (AGP) on March 6 in a case relating to the missing persons and said there was no progress from the government on this lingering question.

On the way to the bench, IHC Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani noted that it was the government and the law enforcement authorities to respond to the families to the missing persons. He added that the state had failed to save the people when the case stood from where it started.

Justice Kayani stated that the case related to human rights violation and that it created a bad image of the country internationally. He added that the court was trying to end the missing persons, but the case would only end when all the missing persons were recovered.

During the hearing, the bench asked if there was any improvement of a missing person since the case last hearing. In response, further lawyer (AAG) expressed Munawwar Iqbal Duggal and a representative of the Ministry of Defense their ignorant.

Aag Duggal requested the court to give more time for the government to inform the right of progress. However, the lawyer of the missing families advocating IMan Mazari opposed further time to the government and emphasized that the court should decide those responsible.

When he was sitting on the bench, justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir said that actions were taken to determine those responsible for the missing persons. Mazari said the former AGP gave insurance that there would be no enforced disappearance, but his insurance policies were repeatedly violated.

Justice Kayani noted that the state had failed to save the people. He asked if there was any data to show that a missing person had died in a terrorist attack. He further noted that the lack of commission of inquiry and the federal government did nothing.

Justice Kayani said that operations against Fitna Al-Khawarij were going on a daily basis, which was commendable, adding that it was the fact that if there was no law enforcement authorities, then “we cannot be protected at all”.