Sethi case referred to higher bench

The Advocate General of Punjab, Asthar Ausaf Ali, told the court that he had checked up with the police and the Federal Investigation Agency FIA and the two denied arresting Sethi and hence the Provincial Government had 8220;no idea where he Sethi is.8221;

A federal government spokesman had said on Saturday that Sethi, Editor of The Friday Times had been arrested by the military intelligence and Inter-Services Intelligence ISI from his Lahore residence for 8220;endangeringthe sovereignty of the country8221; by making some critical comments against the Nawaz Sharif government in New Delhi recently and for his alleged links with Indian intelligence agency, Research and Analysis Wing RAW.

In another development, Mohsin claimed that Punjab Governor Shahid Hamid had called her up Sunday evening and asked her to send her husband8217;s clothes through a senior government official in Islamabad as Sethi was currently in the federal capital.

The spokesman also had said Sethi had possible link with the RAW and had been arrested to investigate these links.

Sethi8217;s wife, however, dismissed the government8217;s allegation claiming that her husband had been arrested for helping out a BBC crew in making a film on the alleged corruption of premier Nawaz Sharif.

She also claimed that Sethi had received threats from the government for his involvement with the BBC team even before he had delivered the so-called 8220;Anti-Pakistan8221; lecture in New Delhi on April 30 last.