KARACHl: The Sindh High Court on Thursday asked the provincial law officer to authenticate a letter reportedly issued on a chief minister directive about the constitution of a committee to investigate the incident of the court siege last month.

A division bench of the SHC, headed by Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, was hearing a petition of former home minister Dr Zulfikar Mirza seeking contempt proceedings against the police high-ups for besieging an antiterrorism court and the high court during his appearance before the courts on May 19 and May 23, respectively.

The letter, dated June 2, was presented before the bench when the matter was taken up on Thursday. It was issued apparently on the chief minister`s directive for the constitution of a two-member inquiry committee to fix responsibility about the violation of SHC`s sanctity on May 23.

When the court questioned the authenticity of the letter purportedly filed on behalf the chief minister, Advocate General for Sindh Abdul Fateh Malik appeared unaware about it. The judges then asked him to verify the authenticity of the letter. After an hour break, the advocate general submitted that there were other law officers also associated with the case and someone from them might have filed the letter in the court.

He sought more time to get it verified and submit a report on the findings of the inquiry committee.

Granting the request, the bench adjourned the hearing till June 8, directing the advocate general to inform it about the authenticity of the letter.

The letter, which was apparently issued by the chief minister`s inspection, inquiries and implementation team purportedly on his directives and addressed to the additional chief secretary home, stated that the inquiry committee had to submit its report within 10 days.

According to the letter, the home department was asked to provide a detailed note of the incident and the standing orders/ circulars/standard operating procedures for maintaining the sanctity of the high court, the security contingency plan of the day, actual security arrangements on the ground and details about the routes of the officers/ officials/ plain-clothes security personnel, their deployment with details whether they were for security or other duties.

It added that details were also sought regarding any inquiry of the incident which was ordered by the Sindh government or any other authority or the court, news clippings, news footage as well as CCTV footage of the incident, information about the authority or officers responsible for command and control of the police force and mode of communication of directions to them as well as details about the persons or property adversely affected during the incident.