Pakistan

Breaking decorum: Ex-law minister briefly jailed

The former minister, who was not summoned to the court, ridiculed himself when he appeared before the judge.

Obaid Abbasi July 04, 2013

The former minister, who was not summoned to the court, ridiculed himself when he appeared before the judge. PHOTO: FILE

ISLAMABAD:

Former law minister Wasi Zafar was held in jail for ‘violating court decorum’ by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday. Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui ordered arrest of the ex-minister for disrupting court proceedings.

The court was hearing a case for the custody of Zafar’s grandchildren, Maha Noor and Sharjeel Waqar. The petitioner Ambar Zafar maintained that her children were snatched from her by her ex-husband, Muhammad Waqar Zafar, the former law minister’s son, after the divorce.

During an earlier hearing, the former minister, who was not summoned to the court, ridiculed himself when he appeared before the judge.

The ex-minister started shouting in the court and this annoyed Justice Siddiqui enough to send Zafar to Adiala Jail. Zafar eventually submitted an unconditional apology to the court and agreed to produce his grandchildren before the court on Thursday.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 4^th, 2013.