Notices issued on Rashid’s bail plea

IHC grants request filed by AML chief's lawyer, moves hearing to Feb 16

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has issued notices to the parties for February 16 on the bail plea of former federal interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, who was arrested in the case registered against him at Aabpara Police Station for levelling murder plot allegations against the former president and Pakistan Peoples’ Party co-chair Asif Ali Zardari.

On Monday, IHC Judge Mohsin Akhtar Kayani heard the post-arrest bail application of the Awami Muslim League (AML) chief.

During the hearing, Advocate Salman Akram Raja appeared in the court on behalf of Rashid and adopted the stance that the applicant is a frail man, therefore, the case may be heard at a recent date.

The court issued notices to the parties for February 16 on the bail application.

In his plea, the AML chief had argued that cases against him were politically motivated. He maintained that a case was registered on the remarks made against the former president, not on the complaint of the aggrieved party but "on complaint of another person".

It should be noted that before approaching the IHC to seek his post-arrest bail, two post-arrest bail pleas of the former interior minister were rejected by the district and sessions in Islamabad.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, February 14^th, 2023.