Treason charges: Interior secretary summoned in MQM chief’s case

LAHORE: The LHC directed on Thursday the interior secretary to appear in court along with a progress report on action being or to be taken against the London-based leader of MQM for his anti-state activities.

Additional Attorney General Naseer Ahmad Bhutta said he advised the interior secretary to not appear before the court on Thursday as Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan was out of country and the secretary would not be in a position to assist the court without seeking instructions from the minister.

Bhutta added the minister would return by November 29 or December 2. Therefore, he asked the bench to adjourn the hearing for four weeks. However, the petitioners’ counsels, Azhar Siddique and Ahmad Awais, opposed the plea of the law officer, saying the government wanted to delay the proceedings.

Subsequently, Justice Syed Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi, head of the bench, rejected the request and summoned the interior secretary on November 28.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2016.