LAHORE:
Justice Anwarul Haq of the Lahore High Court (LHC) directed the FIA to present the record of case against five officials for releasing a fabricated intelligence report about a plot to murder former LHC chief justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif at the next hearing on August 30.
The court admitted for regular hearing a petition moved by former aides of the chief minister Tauqeer Shah and Talha Burki asking the court to quash the FIR registered against them.
Haris, the petitioner’s counsel, said they had no role in the matter and a judicial commission had absolved them. He said the interior ministry had ordered the registration of an FIR against them due to ‘political differences.’
He said the petitioners had asked the FIA DG, the interior ministry, the Lahore and Rawalpindi offices of the FIA and the sessions judges in Lahore and Rawalpindi for a copy for the FIR against them but none had been given to them. He said a magistrate had issued the arrest warrants for Burki and Shah without having a copy of the FIR or seeing record of the case.
Meanwhile, Justice Ali Baqar Najfi of the LHC on Friday granted interim bail to Shah and Burki.
Petitioner’s counsel Khawaja Haris said the accused had nothing to do with the conspiracy but the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had registered a case against them.
He asked the court to entertain the bail application since the central special judge’s seat had been vacant for some time.
The court granted interim bail till August 30 and directed the petitioner to submit surety bonds for Rs 50,000 each.
The LHC on Wednesday had granted protective bail to three Special Branch officials in the same case.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 11th, 2012.
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