ISLAMABAD : The commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, Amir Khan, said they haven’t found out who abducted joint director and former journalist Sajid Gondal yet. Gondal went missing in Islamabad on Saturday. “The matter is being looking into by the court and the security forces are on alert,” Khan said in a media briefing after a hearing at the Islamabad High Court on Monday. He said that Gondal was a loyal officer and the commission is doing everything to recover him as soon as possible. “We are in contact with his family members constantly as well,” the commissioner added. A case pertaining Gondal’s disappearance was heard by Chief Justice Athar Minallah on Monday. He expressed his anger and disappointment at the SECP and Interior Ministry. “The ministry and other departments are only busy taking over land illegally,” the chief justice said. “Every person in the capital feels unsafe because laws here are not properly enforced.” Justice Minallah said that if every matter is taken to the prime minister the behavior of the state would be very different. He told the commissioner to take responsibility for being unable to keep the people of Islamabad safe. He added that the court will not let incidents like these take place and will hold the perpetrators accountable at any cost. During the previous hearing on September 5, the Islamabad High Court had given the Interior Ministry until 2pm on Monday (September 7) to recover the officer. On Sunday, the Missing Persons Commission took notice of the officer’s disappearance and summoned a report regarding the incident from the secretary of the Interior Ministry and Islamabad inspector-general. His family was also directed to appear before the commission on Wednesday (September 9). Gondal’s vehicle was found abandoned outside the Agriculture Research Centre in Shehzad Town, according to the police. Its doors were open and the key was in the ignition. “The disappearance of Sajid Gondal is of concern and we as a government have a duty to ensure his early recovery,” Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari had said in a tweet Friday. She had directed the police to lodge an FIR. The police had then registered a kidnapping case on the complaint of his wife. Gondal’s mother has also filed a petition in the IHC seeking his recovery. His wife informed the court during Saturday’s hearing that her husband had no enmity. He appeared to be depressed lately and would go to the roof to listen to phone calls, she said.
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