A judicial magistrate in Karachi Central ordered on Thursday the inclusion of a boy and his sister, who returned home after reportedly going missing in the city’s North Nazimabad area, and their maternal aunt’s names on the Exit Control List (ECL).

In its written order, the magistrate said that the minors’ aunt Farheen, aka Sonia, could not take the children outside the jurisdiction of the police station and ordered police to ensure that the children did not leave the area.

The case of Ayan and Anabia, the two children, came to the conventional media after their pictures with “missing alert” made rounds on social media as several users re-shared it to raise awareness.

They returned home on Wednesday, but their recovery is still a mystery for the people in the city as police and Rangers have two different versions of the development.

Both the children were brought to court on Thursday in a case related to their custody. Their parents, who are separated, and other relatives also attended the hearing.

The court ordered the Central area SSP to assign any officer to find the house of Farheen immediately. Police are supposed to submit weekly reports to the court.

Children are only allowed to cross the police station jurisdiction for education purposes as the court ordered the appointment of an SSP to ensure the implementation.

In their statement, the children informed the court that the behaviour of their aunt and uncle was cruel. They demanded that they live with their other maternal aunt Farheen.

The children live with their grandparents as their parents split up in 2015. Their mother lives in Dubai, where she works, and occasionally visits the children.

The court observed that the father of the children did not express any intention of taking his children’s custody after separation.

The magistrate handed over temporary custody of the children to their aunt Farheen and ordered her to submit a surety bond of Rs500,000 for the custody of each child to the court.

Hearing

At the hearing, the court remarked that it was necessary to record the statement of children.

The lawyer of their father stated that the children have been ill-treated and they took the step because of the violence. He claimed that the children did not want to stay at their grandmother’s house.

The children’s father was not worried about them as he did not pay any expenses for them over the past many years, the counsel of the children’s maternal uncle said.

The investigation officer informed the court about the children’s statement, citing that the children left home as they were tortured. They went outside to seek a lift from any driver as they wanted to go “Edhi Home”, but the drivers took them to their house and the next morning informed the children’s mother and “dropped them to a mall.”

Later, the court recorded the children’s statement under Section 164 of the CrPC. They said that they had left home due to torture and “no one kidnapped them and they left of the house because of their own free will.”

They demanded that they move in with their other maternal aunt.

The lawyer of the children’s father said that the children were being kept like servants and they were made to clean the washroom. He claimed that the father was not allowed to meet the children for two years.

The court reserved the decision on the petition regarding the custody of the children.