The Sindh High Court (SHC) has directed the Interior Ministry of Sindh to continue providing compensation amounts to the families of missing persons until they appear before the court.

Justice Naimat Ullah Phulpoto heard the petition pertaining to the suspension of compensation to families of a missing person. The petition seeks to restore the amount for eligible families.

A representative of the said ministry informed the court that some people have objections to compensation, which led the disbursement being ceased.

Justice Phulpoto in his remarks directed the ministry to restore compensation for those families who are comfortable with the process.

The judge noted that enforced disappearance indicates that the missing persons are in the custody of agencies. Compensation for their families should continue until their bread earners are produced before the court.

Additionally, the court directed to publish advertisements to trace Majid, who has been missing since 2015, and asked to collect information about missing persons from prison authorities or other places in the country.

The court ordered the federal interior secretary, defence secretary and others to submit a report by February 28.

Prior to this, on January 9, a report by the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearance submitted before the Supreme Court revealed that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province reported the highest number of cases of missing persons among all provinces.

Balochistan reported 2,752 cases of missing persons – the highest after KP.