Searching for missing students with a hope
ISLAMABAD, July 16: People on Sunday continued to run from pillar to post in search of their missing
near and dear ones studying at Lal Masjid madrassas. Instead of assuaging their
misery, the authorities offered them little help in locating the whereabouts of
the missing persons. The distressed lot also complained of discourteous attitude
of the district administration's officials who were deputed at Sports Complex
for their 'service'.
Relatives of the missing persons decried that the
lists displayed at the Complex were incomplete and they were not provided with
the details of their relatives in police custody and the DNA test reports of the
36 dead. They regretted that the photographs of only five out of 72 dead buried
in H-11 graveyard had been displayed at the complex.
Faisal Khan, an
ex-student of Jamia Fareedia, said that he had no information
whether his 16 years old brother living on the Lal Masjid premises was alive. He
said he had a hope that his brother might be alive. He said he had been going to
every place from where he thought his brother could be. He said he had spoken
last to his brother on July 4 over cell phone and learned about his shifting to
an unidentified place by the police along with 300 madrassa students. Ever
since, he said, he has been searching for his missing brother. He said he had
visited twin city hospitals, Adiala Jail, H-11 graveyard and Sports Complex but
found no clue about his whereabouts. He said his brother's picture was not
amongst those displayed at the Complex. He denied Jamia Fareedia taught students
jihadi courses.
Lal Muhammad from Bajaur was present inside the Sport
Complex to learn about his nephew, Ahsanullah, 22, a student of Jamia Fareedia.
He had been missing for the last five days. He said he had visited hospitals and
Adiala Jail in this regard but in vain.
He demanded photographs of those
buried at H-11 graveyard be displayed at hospitals, Adiala Jail and Sport
Complex for the convenience of distressed families. He said people had been
forced to apply for the DNA tests of the buried due to the absence of
photographs from the display boards.
District Magistrate Islamabad Azhar
Bukhari said the Islamabad police arrested 653 madrassa students during the Lal
Masjid operation and all of them were later shifted to Adiala Jail. Of them, he
said, 496 students have been released by Sunday and the remaining 157 are likely
to be freed today (Monday). He said interrogation of the students by
intelligence agencies had been delaying their release.
Deputy
Commissioner Islamabad Chaudhry Muhammad Ali said photographs of only five of 72
persons buried at H-11 graveyard had been put on display at Sports Complex
notice boards and the pictures of other students had been handed over to the
police for investigation.
He said hectic efforts had been underway to
locate missing madrassa students, adding the DNA test reports will contribute to
these efforts.
A crowd of 200 persons gathered at the information cell
set up by MMA MNA Bilqees Saif at Sports Complex to know about missing madrassa
students. She said she would move court if the government did not provide her
with the names of missing students by Monday. Daily times
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