Undue interference: For contempt of court, traders’ leader jailed

Ajmal Baloch threw a book in the judge’s face during a case hearing.

ISLAMABAD:

A trial court on Thursday sent a traders’ leader to jail for violating court decorum.

Aabpara Market Traders Welfare Association president Ajmal Baloch, who is also a PML-N member and a candidate for the NA-48 by-elections, was sent to the jail along with seven other traders for disrespecting court orders during a case hearing between a tenant and landlord of Aabpara Market.

When Additional District and Sessions Judge Amjad Iqbal Raja resumed the case hearing, the petitioner’s counsel Naveed Malik informed the court that Baloch had illegally occupied his client’s shop, which had been leased out to another trader.

Malik maintained that Baloch had used his influence to persuade the court, which had previously ordered in favour of his client, therefore causing inordinate delays in the case’s completion.

Earlier, Baloch had appeared before the court, which ordered his arrest after he threw a book in the judge’s face.

Mumtaz Siddiqui had filed a petition with the district courts requesting that Baloch may be asked to vacate the shop. The respondent has continued to occupy it despite the court ordering in favour of complainant.

Baloch has triumphed in market union elections for the past eight years and has occupied many shops using his influence despite being arrested repeatedly by the city police.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 12^th, 2013.