In a shocking incident, the Pakistani High Court authorities have seized the mobile phone of First Secretary at the Indian High Commission, Piyush Singh.
The incident occurred during the hearing of the case of an Indian woman. The woman sought refuge in the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, after arriving in Pakistan to marry. It was reported that the diplomat’s phone was seized after he was caught taking a photo of the judge during the court hearing.
When the incident was reported to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) judge, he ordered that the diplomat’s phone be seized as it violates the court decorum, says reports. The diplomat was then asked to give a written apology. However, the Secretary claimed that the allegations are baseless and that he did not click any pictures inside the Islamabad court.
The Indian woman, 20 year-old Uzma petitioned the IHC for duplicate travel documents and provision of security for her journey back to India. On her behalf Uzma’s lawyer Malik Shah Nawaz Noon and Piyush Singh had filed the petition. The petition stated that her husband, Tahir Ali, had deceived her as he was already married, and that he stole her passport and other travel documents. Last week, Uzma sought refuge at the Indian High Commission and asked to be repatriated back to India after she realized that the person she got married to Tahir Ali, a resident of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa was already married and had four children.
Uzma on May 8, claimed that she was forced to marry Ali at gunpoint and was subsequently subjected to physical and sexual abuse. However her husband, Tahir denied the claims. The petition sought security for her journey back to India through the Wagah border and requested that her husband be restrained from harassing her.
The petition also urged the court for an immediate hearing in the matter. Meanwhile the Foreign Office (FO), earlier this week, said Uzma would be repatriated back to India once all her legal requirements were completed.
The mobile phone of the diplomat was seized during a period of already heightened tensions between the two nations over a host of issues including Kulbhushan Jadhav, and firing along the line of control in Jammu and Kashmir. But, as per the Vienna Convention, Pakistan, or any other signatory of the convention, cannot seize personal communication devices of a diplomat.
SUPRAJA
