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Zardari terms Babar Awan indictment political victimisation
President Zardari quoted as saying such steps amount to victimisation of political opponents.
Awan rejects what he calls false and politically motivated allegations.
ISLAMABAD:
Expressing concern over the indictment of Federal Law Minister Babar Awan in robbery and kidnapping cases, President Zardari said the step is against democratic values.
According to Presidential spokesperson Farhatullah Babar, the president considers the move by the Punjab prosecution department as based on “ill will”.
President Zardari was quoted as saying that such steps amount to victimisation of political opponents, and undermine the freedom of the judiciary. Two cases were registered against Awan 12 years ago when he was pursuing cases against President Zardari.
On Saturday, a Rawalpindi court indicted the federal law minister in both cases.
Updated from the print edition (below)
Babar Awan indicted for robbery, harassment
Federal Minister for law and Justice, Babar Awan, was indicted on Saturday by an area magistrate here for a robbery and harassment case registered against him in 1998.
The minister appeared in person before Area Magistrate Mehr Sarfaraz Hussain and rejected what he called false and politically motivated allegations.
An FIR was registered in Sadiqabad police station Rawalpindi in 1998 on the complaint of Sheikh Iftikhar Adil, the editor of a daily newspaper Asaas. The complainant had said Awan and a few armed men had tried to abduct him near Sadiqabad.
The journalist had told the police that he was tortured and given life threats after Awan failed to kidnap him. Awan is also accused of having stolen important documents belonging to Adil.
Awan had obtained bail but he failed to appear in court after the expiration of his bail. Later, the court had issued arrest warrants for the minister who then appeared before the court and obtained bail. The area magistrate has asked concerned parties to present evidence by the next date of hearing, March 12.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 6th, 2011.
Reader Comments (19)
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Following in the footsteps of his leader ZABRecommend
Punjab’s judiciary repeating its history of political sabotage of Peoples Party’s government!Recommend
Gee O jialayRecommend
I wish Zardari were so vocal and active to protect Shehbaz Bhatti too.Recommend
So Awan is innocent before even tried?
I am not saying he is guilty, but his, and others from PPP, are showing disdain for the law.
If he is innocent, he will win in either this court, or the next.
For once, we should wait and see don’t you think? or do you claim no member of PPP can be a criminal?
These may be politically motivated charges, but let’s see if judiciary exposes their bias in this trial or not. Besides, in lower courts anyone can be indicted easily, such convictions rarely survive in higher courts.Recommend
What nonsense of a case.. from 1998??? Is this a new way of Punjab govt. to blackmail the PPP? Recommend
Interesting!!Recommend
Is this Independent Judiciary ? I think, this is biased prejudice & Nawaz-Shahbaz Judiciary.Recommend
I wonder if the word politicians could be replaced with the word CHICKENS, as they don’t seem to have any guts to face indictments against them, and bring resolve. These chickens instead prefer doing cock-a-doodle-do on everything.Recommend
@gulbadshah
Fully agreed with your comments. people have lost faith in the present judiciary.Recommend
@Farrukh Riaz:
Why is it nonsense?? If there was a case registered against him then justice should be done!! Better late than never!!Recommend
It now seems as if the Judiciary in Punjab and some well known Judges in SC are behaving like “:Most Obedient Servants of Raiwind” because the “Taya Zaad” brother of Mr. Rana Sanaulla has now been badly exposed by targeting a single party and its leadership in SC. Some judges in LHC and SC are now viewed as most biased. Just imagine that a case of 1998 is important but the CM of Punjab is still working on “Stay Order” from last few years. The case of Air Marshal Asghar Khan (Mehran Bank) and the involvement of our agency in distribution of hard cash to both political and religious parties to get rid of PPP is still waiting to see any day light. I am really not sorry to mention that these biased judges are playing with the whole system and the foundation of the country. Either get them checked by a board of Mental Doctors or get them tried according to the law of the land.Recommend
this is so cool!
its becoming more more more obvious our judiciary is being dictated by Babar Awan!
PPP is so useless this time in being more vocal against the sharifs. i wonder wats holding them back!Recommend
I love to hate this person, yet the whole case is tell tale sign of a falsehood. Has the police in the last 12 years ascertained that he abducted this journalist and of robbery? especially if it never happened (“tried to abduct”, and the value of the documents – if it were not the thesis that got him Ph.D). I think the case against Awan for bribe is more credible than this (at least few crore involved).
@Usama Zafar,
So if Musharaf had registered a case against Nawaz Sharif and SC convicted him in aeroplane hijacking case, that means that because the case had been registered and the highest court of the country punished him with the death penalty, therefore he is a guilty and punishable to death – just try it in your head. If still not satisfied, try ZAB case against Zahoor Ilahi for stealing buffaloes. Recommend
Could very well be politically motivated. We should wait for the judgment. But if proved that this was politically manufactured charge the accuser should be put on trial automatically by the state and court should send out a message that this kind of cases would have a serious consequences if proved to be false charges.Recommend
The justice done will be when justices will beDONE
Pawns of sharifs now previously musharaf stooges
No respect or honiur for this corupt judiciaryRecommend
I once had a chance of listening to Awan’s speech in Allama Iqbal Univeristy Islamabad. Threats, bad words for opponents, harsh and too loud. In a few minutes he was attacked and he had to save his life running bare feet. Recommend
Is that picture of Babar Awan or Bollywood villian Nana Patekar ?Recommend
If they were politically motivated,he should prove that in courtRecommend