Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Additional Joint Director Sajid Gondal said Tuesday he has returned home and is safe, after being missing for five days.
Gondal, in a tweet, said: “I am back and safe, and I am thankful to all friends who were worried for me.”
Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan had noted with concern in a meeting of the federal cabinet the disappearance of Gondal and directed authorities to ‘leave no stone unturned’ for his recovery, Radio Pakistan had reported information minister Shibli Faraz as saying. The prime minister’s concern came after a protest was held earlier in the day outside Prime Minister’s Secretariat in Islamabad by Gondal’s relatives and well-wishers. His wife deplored that no institution has contacted her so far with regard to the recovery of her husband. “Why was a Pakistani citizen picked up? Sajid Gondal has never reported on any sensitive matter,” the wife told the media while talking to reporters at the protest. Gondal’s wife lamented that her husband was still missing despite the orders of the court for his recovery. She said that the family only seeks the assistance of government institutions in recovering Gondal. She added if her husband had broken the law in any way then he should be produced before the court.
A day earlier, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had ordered law enforcement agencies to ensure Gondal’s return by September 17. The directives were issued by IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah while hearing a case related to the missing SECP official. The SECP official had gone missing on Thursday evening, prompting top government officials, including the human rights minister, Shireen Mazari, and the premier’s aide on accountability, Shahzad Akbar, to issue directives for his ‘early recovery’ on Friday.
