Quetta [Pakistan], April 1 (ANI): Advocate Imaan Zainab Mazari from Pakistan, representing Baloch rights activist Rashid Hussain, revealed that the proceedings of his client at the Islamabad High Court have been delayed since 2022.
She added that the delays continue despite clear instructions from the court to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pakistan, The Balochistan Post reported.
The advocate flagged the alleged ignorance of the Pakistani administration about the delays on social media platform ‘X’, stating, “Rashid Hussain’s case has been pending before the CJ IHC’s court since 2022. Court has repeatedly passed the same direction to Ministry of Foreign Affairs but those directions are never complied with by the Ministry”.
https://twitter.com/ImaanZHazir/status/1773937330664919282 )
“On many dates, when the case has been fixed for hearing, the Court “cancels” case a day before or on the day of the hearing. When early hearing requests are filed, Chief Justice Islamabad High Court gives long dates despite urgent nature of case. Rashid Hussain’s mother is still waiting for answers but now the case has been fixed (with a delay once again) for April 24,” she added.
The report, quoting Hussain’s family members, stated that he was abducted by the Pakistani defence agencies in UAE with the help of backdoor diplomacy in 2018 and has been missing ever since. Pakistan’s Foreign ministry also hasn’t provided any details regarding the whereabouts of Hussain or in whose custody he remains, the report claimed.
Hussain was a Baloch rights activist, who was detained in the UAE and eventually extradited to Pakistan.
However, the Pakistani foreign ministry has failed to reveal the details of Hussain’s extradition in 2019.
Mazari claimed it was an act of negligence and a reflection of the perceived indifference of the administration to the enforced disappearances of its citizens, Balochistan Post stated in another report last year.
The same report added that Rashid Hussain’s sister, Fareeda Baloch, shared on X that various media reports and police statements had confirmed Rashid’s extradition to Pakistan.
She referred to footage aired by Pakistani media outlets showing an unidentified individual, face covered, being escorted from Karachi airport.
Further, the same Balochistan Post report claimed that despite initial confirmations, Fareeda highlighted that when the family presented evidence pointing to Rashid’s forceful extradition and subsequent disappearance, the authorities changed their stance, labelling him an absconder from an anti-terrorism court in Karachi.
She also detailed incidents where their family home was allegedly subjected to raids by Pakistani forces and her close relatives were detained. She said these incidents were attempts to intimidate her and her family into dropping the case. (ANI)
