According to the family of the SECP official, Gondal's car was found in front of the National Agricultural Research Centre (NARC) on Park Road, located in Chak Shahzad. The family members reportedly said Gondal visited a family-owned dairy farm in Chak Shahzad.
Police have registered a case and have started a probe into the incident. According to Dawn, the local police, as part of routine procedure, examined Gondal's car and informed the family that due to heavy rain earlier in the day, no fingerprints could be found on the vehicle.
Amnesty Int'l reacts to the development:
Amnesty International urged the government to establish his whereabouts immediately. "Sajid Gondal, a former journalist and an official with the SECP, is missing and feared to have been disappeared. We call upon the authorities to establish his whereabouts immediately," the rights watchdog added.
Following the report of his abduction, activists and social media users have pointed fingers at the law enforcement officials for their involvement in the disappearance. They linked the abduction of Gondal with a recent story by journalist Ahmad Noorani that disclosed the asset details of Gen (r) Asim Saleem Bajwa.
Reactions To Abduction:
Former PPP senator Farhatullah Babar said the SECP official must be recovered immediately. "Perception growing that kidnapping linked to report about Lt Gen Asim Bajwa. Far from damage control, angry knee jerk response has done incalculable damage," the PPP leader said, adding the abduction 'lent credence to the report' about Bajwa's assets.
Academic and political activist Ammar Ali Jan criticised the disappearance. "Official of Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, Sajid Gondal, has been abducted from Islamabad. From politics to journalism to the economy, everything is now considered part of National Security. This madness cannot be sustainable for too long," he tweeted.
Ammar Rashid said this abduction was 'a message to everyone to stop asking inconvenient questions'. "Right on time, a message to everyone to stop asking inconvenient questions about 'money trails'. We are ruled by a cabal of thugs," he added.
Journalist Murtaza Ali Shah wrote: "Joint Director SECP Sajid Gondal (Ex Reporter Dawn) has been abducted by unknown men on suspicions of passing inside information to reporters #BringBackSajidGondal #enforceddisappearances"