Dr Asim Hussain released from prison following SHC order

The PPP leader is now being shifted to Ziauddin Hospital, Clifton

KARACHI: After spending 19 months in custody, the close aide of former president Asif Ali Zardari and president of the PPP Karachi division, Dr Asim Hussain, finally walked free on Friday after the Sindh High Court (SHC) issued an order for his release on bail in connection with Rs479 billion corruption cases.

Dr Hussain was formally released from the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, which was declared as sub-jail due to his prolonged admission to the health facility for treatment of different ailments he had been suffering.

Instead of heading home, he was shifted to Dr Ziauddin Hospital run by his family’s trust.

On Wednesday, the high court’s referee judge, Justice Aftab Ahmed Gorar, whose opinion was sought on the split verdict of a two-judge bench, granted bail to Dr Hussain subject to furnishing a Rs5 million surety and surrendering his original Pakistani and Canadian passports.

However, the former petroleum adviser had spent two more days in custody as his lawyer could not deposit his passports with the high court because the same were already deposited to the anti-terrorism court concerned, where the case against him for sheltering and treating terrorists at his private health facilities in Karachi was pending.

On Thursday, his lawyers through an application sought modification in the bail order to the extent that the SHC’s Nazir should be directed to issue the release order for the PPP leader without submitting his passports.

The two-judge bench, which had delivered a split order, had declined to hear the matter and referred the same to the SHC Chief Justice to constitute a new bench to hear the plea.

However, Dr Hussain had to spend second night in custody because the chief justice was away from the city and no order could be passed on his application for the issuance of the release order.

Finally on Friday, the assistant registrar of the SHC’s Writ Branch issued the release order, addressing the superintendent of the Karachi Central Jail to release the petitioner, Dr Asim Hussain, if his custody was not required in any other case.

In the release order, a copy of which was available with The Express Tribune, the registrar certified that surety had been deposited by the petitioner in the shape of special saving certificates and surety bond while the judge of the ATC-II had forwarded one original Pakistani and Canadian passports of Dr Hussain, which are kept in safe custody of the Nazir of the SHC.

“You are, therefore, required to release the petitioner Dr Asim Hussain, son of Tajamul Hussain (late), if he is not required in any other case,” the assistant registrar directed the prison superintendent.

The paramilitary Rangers had taken Dr Hussain into ‘preventive detention’ on August 27, 2015 for three months over his alleged involvement in corruption. Observers had declared it a major arrest of any leader of the opposition PPP following a crackdown on corrupt politicians and officials in Sindh.



Later, he was handed over to the police in connection with a case related to alleged treatment and harbouring of terrorists at his private health facilities in Karachi. On November 1 last year, the SHC granted Dr Hussain bail in the case.

However, the PPP leader remained in jail seeking bail in corruption references filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against alleged graft of Rs479 billion.

Meanwhile, the Sindh High Court (SHC) directed the interior ministry to take immediate steps to keep the name of Dr Asim Hussain on Exit Control List (ECL).

The directive came in pursuance of the SHC's March 29 order, passed by its referee judge, Justice Aftab Ahmed Gorarh who, while granting bail to the PPP leader, had directed him to deposit his original Pakistani and Canadian passports with the court's Nazir (official).

The court had also directed the interior ministry not to issue him any 'fresh or duplicate' passport and to place his name on ECL till further orders.

In pursuance of the order, SHC Registrar Ghulam Mustafa Memon wrote a letter to the ministry on Friday to get the court’s order implemented.

"You are, therefore, required to take immediate steps, on priority basis, in this behalf, and desist from issuing duplicate or fresh passports to Dr Asim Hussain, and keep his name on the Exit Control List forthwith," read the letter, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune.

The registrar further asked the interior secretary that a report regarding compliance of the court’s order in letter and spirit should be furnished to the court by today (Friday).