LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday directed the inspector general of Punjab police (IGP) to file a fresh report in light of CCTV footage of the alleged abduction of brother of former Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf leader Usman Dar from a restaurant in DHA.

Justice Ali Baqar Najafi observed that if individuals in police uniform were involved in the alleged abduction, the IGP should inform the court about their identity.

“If they are police officials, then which police station do they belong to?” the judge added, asking a law officer of the Punjab government to show the footage to the IGP.

The petitioner’s lawyer asserted that Umar Dar was abducted by more than 40 individuals, including those clad in police uniforms, from a private café near Defence, Lahore.

He said the area was a busy locality, and there were CCTV cameras installed.

He said everything would become clear if the footage from 10am to 12pm on the day of the incident was retrieved.

The judge adjourned the hearing till Wednesday (today) and directed the government’s lawyer to submit a fresh report on behalf of the IGP.

Earlier, the petitioner’s counsel stated that the mother of the abducted man was contesting elections against Khwaja Asif of the PML-N from Sialkot, claiming that the petitioner’s family was being targeted on political grounds.

Published in Dawn, January 3rd, 2024