Official duty cannot be performed from jail, says top court

Says every document coming out of jail bears the signature and stamp of jail superintendent

ISLAMABAD: Talking with reference to the incarcerated Karachi Mayor Waseem Akhtar, the top court has observed that official functions cannot be performed from jail.

The Supreme Court’s judge Justice Dost Muhammad passed these remarks on Wednesday while heading a two-judge bench, hearing a petition to bar Waseem Akhtar from taking oath as mayor Karachi.



Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Waseem Akhtar, who is facing many cases including one related to his alleged involvement in the May 12, 2007 carnage, took oath as Karachi mayor on Tuesday as his party announced he would carry on his official duties from jail.

“Every document that comes out of the jail bears the signature and stamp of jail superintendent,” the judge said, adding that a mayor also has to take very important decisions regarding various departments like the Karachi Development Authority, Water Board as well as do a lot of planning.

Earlier, the petitioner’s counsel contended that Waseem Akhtar was nominated in many criminal cases and according to law a criminal could not hold the post of a mayor. He said Waseem Akhtar would be a risk to the people of Karachi.

However, Justice Dost Muhammad observed that as Akhtar had already taken oath, the petition had become infractuous. The petitioner, however, requested the bench to permit him to modify his application.



After hearing the arguments, the bench permitted the petitioner to amend the application and adjourned the case for an indefinite period. The Sindh High Court had rejected last week the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Faisal Vawda’s petition to bar Akhtar from taking oath.

Legal experts believe the bail of Waseem Akhtar in the present circumstance is not possible. However, they say, his house could be declared a sub-jail from where he could operate, according to the jail manual.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 1^st, 2016.