The Supreme Court on Friday was moved over the alleged enforced disappearance of two family members of a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) activist.
In his petition, the father of PTI activist Azhar Mashwani contended that his two other sons, Professor Zahoorul Hassan Mashwani and Professor Mazharul Hassan Mashwani, had been abducted by unidentified individuals from their residence in Lahore on June 6, 2024, and have yet to return home.
Filed through senior advocate Aitzaz Ahsan, Mashani's father contended that their continued disappearance violates their fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 9. It added that while habeas petitions over their abduction were filed before the Lahore High Court, the proceedings showed that the remedy was "non-efficacious".
However, the petitioner learnt that a constitutional petition over their disappearance remains pending before the top court and requested that he should be included as a party in that case.
However, the petition further listed seven other missing individuals including Ghulam Shabbir (missing for over 43 days), Malik Rizwan Ahmed (missing for over 18 days), Malik Nauman Ahmed (missing for over 18 days), Atta-ur-Rehman (missing for over six days), Farid Malik (missing for over four days), Mudassar Chaudhry (missing for over four days), and Faizan Malik (missing for over four days).
The petitioner argued that if he is not included in that case and heard effectively, "lives of his two sons/missing persons shall remain in sheer danger and their whereabouts unknown. Which amounts to disregard to express guarantees given to the citizens of Pakistan under Article 4 of the Constitution without any ambiguity."
"The state of Pakistan is bound to protect the lives of my sons/missing persons as its citizens, which is their fundamental right, along with all other missing persons of the country whcih are being deprived of their most precious, religious, natural and fundamental right."