Corruption charges: Sharjeel Memon’s bail plea dismissed

Bench also recalls bail of former information secretary for failing to appear

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) dismissed on Thursday a petition of former information minister Sharjeel Inam Memon seeking bail in corruption cases and removal of the ban on his travel.

A two-judge bench, headed by Justice Irfan Saadat Khan, dismissed the petition due to non-prosecution as Memon's lawyer, Faiz H Shah, was absent from the hearing on Thursday.

"It is brought to our notice by his [Shah's] associate that he has gone to Islamabad to attend some personal [affairs], which shows he is not interested in pressing the matter," observed the bench. "In the circumstances, the instant petition is dismissed on account of non-prosecution along with listed application."

Memon, a Pakistan Peoples Party leader living in self-exile in Dubai since crackdown was launched against corruption of politicians and officers in Sindh last year, had sought bail before arrest in connection with a Rs5-billion scam regarding government advertisements' distribution.

He had also pleaded that the court order the federal government to take his name off the Exit Control List.

Bail recalled

Meanwhile, the bench recalled the interim pre-arrest bail granted to the former information department secretary, Zulfiqar Ali Shalwani, on July 3, 2015, in the same scam.

On Thursday, Shallwani was not present in the court while his lawyer was also absent.

Such conduct irritated the two judges who recalled the interim bail that had been granted and ordered issuing notices to the former secretary to appear on September 6.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 26^th, 2016.