LAHORE: The Punjab government is reportedly going to request Islamabad to simplify the procedure for obtaining warrants of surveillance of terror suspects, declaring the mechanism in the Investigation of Fair Trial Act 2013 complicated, Dawn learnt on Sunday.
The Act was introduced to allow collection of evidence through surveillance of those suspected of committing any scheduled offence, or their cell phones based communication.
Under the law, the surveillance is subject to a warrant which can be applied for by an authorised officer appointed by the head of an intelligence agency or police. Evidence collected under this process is admissible as evidence in all legal proceedings.
Under the existing provisions of the Act, a report is required to be submitted to the interior minister, along with necessary material, associating the person to be put under surveillance with any scheduled offence.
In case the minister gives the approval, another application is required to be submitted before a high court judge designated by the chief justice for a decision in his chamber, under the Act.
The law also provides for a review committee comprising defence, interior and law ministers to ensure there was no misuse of such powers --that is punishable under the law.
Sources said the Punjab government found the procedure ‘difficult’ and ‘impractical’ as the delay involved was likely to deny the investigators any sudden or short-lived opportunity of gaining information.
The province was going to recommend to the federal government that the warrants should be issued by an executive authority for a period of 60 days on a request from a relevant agency and this decision should be open to review by a sessions judge in chambers on a complaint, or automatically after a fixed time such as a fortnight to ascertain the need for its continuity.
Sanction against an officer making a warrant request should be applied only where the request was considered to be based on mala fide or corruption.
The province was also suggesting the federal government to allow all provincial governments to oversee execution of such warrants to prevent misuse.
The sources added that some Punjab government quarters were recommending that instead of the executive authority, a judicial officer should issue the warrants.
“But still the Punjab government is suggesting simplification (of the procedure),” a source said.
(Daily Dawn)
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