IHC informed: PM writes letter to Biden, seeking Dr Aafia’s release

ISLAMABAD: The additional attorney general (AAG), Friday, informed the Islamabad High Court (IHC) that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has written a letter to US President Joe Biden seeking release of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, currently confined in an American prison.

The AAG apprised that to a single bench of Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan who heard the constitutional petition of Dr Fowzia Siddiqui.

In his letter to the US President Biden, PM Shehbaz stated that I am writing this letter to you, President, to seek your kind intervention in a matter that deserves to be viewed with compassion.

He added, “I am referring to the case of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani citizen who has been incarcerated at FMC Carswell since September 2010. Dr Siddiqui is serving an eighty-six (86) year sentence, without the possibility of parole, imposed by the Southern District Court of New York. Now 52 years old, she has spent approximately sixteen years behind bars in the US.”

“Over the years, numerous Pakistani officials have paid consular visits to Dr Siddiqui at FMC Carswell and all of them have raised their serious concerns about the treatment she has received, which has severely impacted her already fragile mental and frail physical health. In fact, they even fear that she could take her own life,” said the PM.

He added I am well aware of how passionately you have fought for the rights of your citizens, particularly those stranded or held captive abroad.

He continued, “You would, therefore, fully understand that as Prime Minister, it is my solemn duty to intervene when it becomes absolutely necessary to ensure a citizen’s well-being, particularly when the circumstances are as dire as they are in this case.”

Shehbaz further said that keeping these facts in view, I request you, Mr President, to kindly exercise your constitutional authority and accept Dr Siddiqui’s clemency petition and order her release, strictly on humanitarian grounds.

He concluded, “I trust that, guided by the spirit of kindness and compassion, you will accord the most serious consideration that this request deserves. Her family and millions of my fellow citizens join me in seeking your blessings for a favourable outcome of this request.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024