LHC wants answers from Nawaz, Shehbaz

Judge issues notices to ousted prime minister, CM and others

LAHORE: Lahore High Court Justice Mamoon Rashid Sheikh issued notices to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif and several other parliamentarians.



It sought a reply from these respondents on a petition which accused them if ‘scandalising and ridiculing’ Supreme Court judges. The petitioner’s counsel, Advocate Azhar Siddique, told the court that Nawaz, Shehbaz, Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique and other parliamentarians continued to issue statements against the apex court judges even before proceedings of the Panamagate case.

It added that these comments had also started before the  submission of the Joint Investigation Team Report (JIT) report.

“The statements issued against the Supreme Court judges were tantamount to committing contempt of court,” he said. He contended that the respondents violated articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution.



He said that the doors of senate chairman and speakers of the National and provincial assemblies were knocked on, but their applications were chucked into the dustbin. He contended that the National Assembly speaker belonged to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the rejection of their application was the part of his malafide intention.

He requested the court that 17 lawmakers, including Nawaz, Shehbaz, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Ahmed Saeed Kirmani, Khawaja Asif, Danyal Aziz, Ishaq Dar, Talal Chaudhary, Mayeza Hameed, Tariq Fazal Chaudhary, Perez Rasheed, Rana Sana Ullah, and others be disqualified, while contempt proceedings be initiated against them.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 16^th, 2017.