Daily Times

LAHORE: Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar has constituted complaints’ cell at the Lahore registry of the Supreme Court to address grievances of citizens.

These include two human rights cells for redress of grievances pertaining to violation of citizenship rights, particularly of citizens from minority communities.

In the newly-formed cells, the staff would be required to vet all applications received and forward them to the CJ after thorough scrutiny.

Justice Nisar issued the directives after meeting a woman from Sialkot, who identified herself as Sughran Bibi, and said that she was not allowed to see him (the CJP) due to security protocol.

Sughran Bibi was protesting alongside other members of her family at the Ghulab Devi hospital when the CJP’s motorcade was leaving the hospital following his inspection visit. Taking notice of the protesting women, the CJP stopped his motorcade to listen to her complaint. She was asked to appear in the court the next day.

At the court, Sughran Bibi claimed that her only son was killed by some policemen in a staged encounter as a reprisal for the family’s refusal to sell their house to one Azam Butt and his accomplices.

Later, Azam Butt got her implicated in a kidnapping for ransom case and she had to serve 10-month jail term.

She further claimed that her elder daughter was kidnapped by the accused during her imprisonment and there was no information yet about her whereabouts.

The CJP ordered that the matter should be treated as a suo motu case, while directing issuance of notices to all the accused, including police officers for appearing in the court during the next hearing.

Published in Daily Times, March 27^th 2018.