Citizens have been made aliens in Pakistan
What a misery!
The Lahore High Court had imposed a 6-month embargo on me in September 2015. The embargo restricted the mainstream TV in public and private sector and the newspapers to publish or broadcast my statements and write-ups. The slain former President of the Supreme Court Bar Association Ms. Asma Jahangir took a principled stance and had filed a petition in the same Lahore High Court and the Supreme Court. She was a renowned barrister-at-law and a very kind rights activist. On this courageous stance, perpetrators had first done their worst to see her abandon her petition but when she shuffled all such notorious acts of intimidation, she was poisoned to death. The slain academician and MQM Deputy Convener Prof. Dr Hasan Zafar Arif approached the court along with a petition in the Sindh High Court with which he challenged the unlawful siege of my residence famed as 'Nine Zero' and had sought relief on the basis of justice. January 13, 2018 was a very sad day when unidentified armed men in plain clothes abducted him. He was subjected to brutal physical torture and finally he succumbed to his injuries. He was extrajudicially murdered for showing courage and raising voice against the injustices and tyranny.
The perpetrators had dumped his severely tortured body at a deserted location in close vicinity in Ibrahim Hyderi. He was placed in his car's rear seat. Later on, one of MQM former coordination committee member and former MNA, Nisar Ahmed Panhwar approached the Sindh High Court with a petition against the embargo on August 27, 2022 through eminent lawyer Mr Khalid Mumtaz and the higher court had fixed a date of August 30 for first hearing. However, the paramilitary Rangers had abducted him a day earlier on August 29. He was released on 11 October 2022 after his unlawful custody for many days. Advocate Mumtaz had on Panhwar's behalf filed several applications with the Sindh High Court for the commencement of hearing on his petition. On May 30, 2023, a 2-member bench of the Sindh High Court, consisting of Justice Yousuf Ali Saeed and Justice Abdul Rahman, heard the petition. Advocate Mumtaz had brilliantly as professional lawyer submitted his arguments in favour of the application before the bench, but the bench had all of a sudden dismissed it. The bench simply stated that Panhwar's application wasn't admissible.
I, hereby, put a question to the people of Pakistan that whether Panhwar wasn't an MNA or a citizen of Pakistan? Was he not eligible per the constitution to be a petitioner in the court of law as a citizen? Why was his petition declared inadmissible?
My dear fellow countrymen, I need to know who would under this oppressive atmosphere approach the courts of law for justice? And, particularly with my case, where should anyone on my behalf go for justice?