KARACHI: PTI on Monday challenged in the Sindh High Court (SHC) the alleged detention of over 180 party workers during raids in Karachi and other parts of Sindh under the controversial Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance.
On Sunday, the PTI alleged that the Sindh police carried out pre-dawn raids on the houses of its workers and leaders and picked up around 180 of them. The provincial government has denied the allegations of detention.
A two-member constitutional bench comprising Justice Muhammad Saleem Jessar and Justice Nisar Ahmed Bhanbhro took up the plea for hearing on Monday. Advocate Ali Tahir appeared as the petitioners’ counsel.
However, Justice Bhanbro recused from hearing the case.
Subsequently, the bench ordered the registrar’s office to fix the hearing for Tuesday as the “counsel pleads urgency”, according to a short order available with media.
The case will now be fixed before another two-member bench of the SHC.
The petitioners — PTI Sindh General Secretary Mansoor Ali and Insaf Lawyers Forum President Faisal Mughal — contended that the order issued under the MPO, dated February 1, be declared impugned and sought the immediate release of the party workers.
The petition — a copy of which is available with media — named 14 respondents, including the provincial chief secretary; the additional chief secretary; the inspector general (IG); the Karachi additional IG; the deputy IGs of Karachi’s East, West and South zones; and the SSPs of Karachi’s East, West, South, Central, Malir, Korangi, and Keamari districts.
The petitioners requested the court to declare the MPO orders “unconstitutional, illegal, without lawful authority, void ab initio, coram non judice, and of no legal effect”.
The party alleged in the petition that law enforcement agencies conducted “hundreds of illegal raids, storming into private homes without warrants, often in the dead of night, and abducting citizens without due process”.
It further alleged that during the raids, police personnel “[broke] down doors, vandalised property, and looted personal belongings” in the 180 “documented cases”.
The petition stated that the orders were given without “any disclosed or lawful decision, approval, or satisfaction of the provincial cabinet”, which it said stood in direct violation of Articles 4, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 19, and 25 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.”
The petitioners sought that the court declare the “impugned orders constitute a mala fide, colourable, arbitrary and politically motivated exercise of power, issued for an extraneous and collateral purpose, namely the suppression of political opposition and peaceful democratic activity, and not for the genuine maintenance of public order as contemplated by law”.
The petition also stated that the PTI, as a registered and recognised political party, “is constitutionally entitled ot organise, participate in, and carry out peaceful political activity, including meetings, protests, strikes, and political expression”.
It further prayed that the court “set aside the impugned orders in their entirety and suspend their operation forthwith”.
It added that the respondents should be restrained from taking “any action whatsoever pursuant to, in reliance upon, or in furtherance of the said impugned orders”.
The petitioners also requested the court to direct the immediate release of “all persons who have been arrested, detained, restrained, or otherwise deprived of liberty pursuant to the impugned orders, if not required in any other case”.
It further asked that “no fresh detention, arrest, or coercive action be taken against them on the basis of the same allegations, intelligence, or grounds”.
The petition prayed that the court declare the actions taken in relation to the orders “illegal, unconstitutional, without lawful authority, and violative of fundamental rights.”
The petitioners alleged that actions taken against the workers included “warrantless raids, home invasions, arrests, detentions, harassment, intimidation, and the detention of minors, women, and elderly citizens”.
It also sought that the respondents should present before the court the “complete original record, including all summaries, intelligence reports, recommendations, approvals, notes, and decision-making documents allegedly relied upon for issuance of the impugned orders, including any purported approval or consideration by the provincial Cabinet”.
The petitioners requested the court to initiate contempt of court proceedings against the additional chief secretary (home) and declare that he “has acted in willful disobedience and defiance of binding judgments of this honourable court passed in earlier MPO matters, and that the repeated issuance of identical unlawful orders amounts to disregard of judicial authority and prima facie contempt of court”.
They requested the court to ensure that no preventive detention order under the MPO Ordinance should be issued in Sindh without “strict compliance with constitutional requirements, individualised satisfaction, and demonstrable approval of the provincial Cabinet”.
The petitioners asked the court to issue orders “restraining respondents from misusing” provisions under the MPO, particularly, as a “substitute for ordinary criminal law or as a tool for political suppression”.
“Declare that the existence of any alleged alternate remedy under the MPO Ordinance does not bar the constitutional jurisdiction of this honourable court in matters involving deprivation of liberty and mass unlawful detention,” the petition read.
It further said that the court should “grant any consequential, incidental, or ancillary relief necessary to fully restore and protect the fundamental rights of the affected citizens, including protection against re-arrest on the same or similar grounds”.
‘Repression, deception, and abuse of power’
Meanwhile, PTI Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh assailed the government for the “arrests”, stating that, “180 PTI office-bearers and workers were arrested and sent to jail under MPO-3 for one month, not for violence, but for announcing a peaceful, voluntary strike on February 8.”
In a post on X, Sheikh claimed that while the government ministers “publicly denied arrests and MPO orders till late night, the detention orders were quietly issued the same night, and detainees were shifted to jail”.
“This is not governance; it is repression, deception, and abuse of power,” he added.
On Sunday, the Sindh government had categorically rejected PTI’s claims, calling them “completely false and misleading”.
Senior Sindh Minister Sharjeel Memon, who also holds the portfolio of information, said no mass arrests or detentions under MPO had taken place.
He told media the PTI statement was based on incorrect information and aimed at creating unnecessary political hype.
“Where’s the list of those arrested? It’s a blatant lie. The PTI is spreading false narratives to build momentum and gain political sympathy for its announced protest planned for February 8,” Memon said.
He added: “The provincial government has not issued any blanket detention orders against PTI leaders or workers and that law enforcement agencies are acting strictly within the law.”
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