IHC summons Islamabad SSP in petition alleging harassment of PTI leaders, raids on their homes

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday summoned the senior superintendent of police (operations) on September 24 in a petition concerning alleged harassment of PTI leaders and raids on their homes ahead of the party’s scheduled long march to the capital. Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court Bar Association (IHCBA) has also claimed that police were intimidating and detaining members of the legal fraternity. The IHC directives came as Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas heard a petition filed by PTI leaders, including Malik Aamir Dogar and Shoaib Shaheen, challenging alleged police harassment and raids on the residences of party leaders. According to the court order, the petitioners’ counsel informed the judge that police officials were conducting allegedly illegal raids on the homes of PTI leaders.

The counsel pleaded that raids could not be conducted without proper legal authorisation and requested the court to restrain Islamabad police officials from violating the sanctity of homes and the privacy of households, the order said. Issuing the order, the IHC summoned the Islamabad SSP (operations) to appear in person on September 24 to address the allegations raised in the petition. The proceedings come amid heightened security measures in Islamabad ahead of the PTI’s long march and protest activities. Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) had also launched a march towards the federal capital, but has now postponed it on the government’s request. Police have already deployed more than 2,000 containers at various locations in Islamabad and at Attock Bridge, an entry point to Punjab from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and northern parts of the country. Ahead of the march that aims to demand the release of ex-premier Imran Khan, three of his sisters have been jailed for 30 days under preventive…