The court has also ordered a committee comprising officials of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the Military Intelligence, the Intelligence Bureau (IB), and the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) to give an in-camera briefing to the court on the issue.
A three-member bench led by IHC’s senior puisne judge Mohsin Akhtar Kayani on Thursday resumed hearing a case related to the enforced disappearance of people in the country, particularly the Balochistan province.
During the hearing, Justice Kayani remarked that a policy should be formulated to address the issue, and a mechanism should be created and presented before the federal cabinet for approval.
“Whether the missing individuals are in Kashmir, Afghanistan, or any prison, whether they are alive or dead, it is the state’s responsibility to provide answers. We must establish a procedure for recovering missing persons.
“I believe the Ministry of Defense can develop a mechanism to resolve this issue. The ministry and intelligence agencies should formulate a policy and submit it to the federal government,” he added.
Earlier, various institutions, including the Ministry of Defense, submitted detailed reports to the court. After reviewing them, the court returned the sealed reports.
The court instructed the Ministry of Defense that the committee comprising officers from the ISI, the MI, the CTD Balochistan, and the IB ensure their presence at the next hearing and give an in-camera briefing to the court.
The bench also ordered the additional attorney-general to present a report on missing persons.