PHC orders IGP to investigate minister's alleged abduction

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Saturday directed the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Inspector General of Police to investigate the alleged abduction of Provincial Minister Fazal Shakoor Khan and take immediate steps for his recovery. A two-member bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Kamran Hayat Miankhel also issued a written order in the case. The bench was hearing a petition filed by Anwar Aziz, brother of the missing minister, which stated that unidentified armed men abducted Fazal Shakoor near a motorway toll plaza on September 21. Counsel for the petitioner, Bashir Khan Wazir, Ali Zaman and Barrister Sarwar Muzaffar Shah, told the court that the provincial minister was kidnapped near the motorway entry/exit point despite the presence of police. Chamkani police have already registered a case of abduction against unidentified persons. During the previous hearing, the court had summoned the investigating officer. He informed the bench that two individuals accompanying the minister had returned home safely and recorded their statements under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.