SC grants Malik a month to submit reply in Steel Mills case

SC issues notices to government to appoint judges to special courts within three days.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister’s advisor on Interior Affairs Rehman Malik on Tuesday sought further time from the Supreme Court to submit his written reply in a contempt of court case in relation to alleged interference in investigations of the Pakistan Steel Mill (PSM) corruption cases.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry while hearing the case accepted Malik’s plea and adjourned the hearing of the case till July 23.

During Tuesday’s proceedings, the court questioned Malik on why he formed a new joint investigating team for probing the PSM cases even while the apex court had ordered an investigation into the scandal.

The former Interior Minister informed the court that the team was dissolved following a court order, adding that Justice Javed Iqbal had exempted Malik from attending the hearing.

Justice Chaudhry maintained that no such order quoted by the defendant was mentioned in the case file.

Three day notice for special courts

Hearing a case regarding appointments in special courts, a bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered that the government appoint judges within three days and provide an implementation report in this regard before July 2.

The apex court noted the accused are being set free on bail owing to shortage of judges, adding that several of anti-corruption and banking courts were without judges for over a year now.

The court directed the federal government to make appointments on the positions lying vacant in special courts and submit report in this regard within three days or 72 hours.