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Jehangiri to hear Mrs Siddiq's plaint today

RECORDER REPORT

ISLAMABAD: Despite legal deficiencies, the Chief Justice Irshad Hassan Khan has ordered that the complaint of Mrs. Fehmida Siddiq-ul-Farooq, wife of former Chairman of the House Building Finance Corporation, be heard by Justice Mohammad Bashir Jehangiri, the Senior Puisne Judge on Tuesday.

The Chief Justice, according to a press release of the Supreme Court here on Monday passed the order on a "constitutional petition" Fehmida Siddiq-ul-Farooq had filed which was meant to be an appeal against the rejection of her petition before the Lahore High Court on the whereabouts of her husband.

The petition had been returned by the Registrar's office on the grounds that it was incomplete and lacked the order of the LHC and hence it could not be processed or registered.

Instead of meeting the requirements to complete a petition for leave to appeal, the lawyers for Mrs. Farooq filed an appeal against the order of the Registrar which was also incomplete.

The Chief Justice, however, ordered that "in view of the urgency of the matter" the appeal should be placed before the Senior Puisne Judge at 9 on Tuesday morning.

In its order the Lahore High Court had discharged the case after the government lawyers had said that the whereabouts of Siddiq-ul-Farooq were "not available to them".

Siddiq-ul-Farooq, a former journalist worked in the Media Cell of the Pakistan Muslim League and when the party came into power was elevated as Press Secretary to the Prime Minister. After nearly a year's stint he was made the Chairman of the House Building Finance Corporation. He was taken into custody soon after the dismissal of Nawaz Sharif government and according to some reports was lodged with the garrison in the Malik Cantt.