PESHAWAR: The stay order in a damages suit filed against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan restraining the sessions judge from passing a final order was vacated on Friday after the party chief withdrew his review petition against the verdict of the subordinate court for quick disposal of the case.
The PHC on April 24, last year, through its stay order, had restrained the district and sessions judge Peshawar from final verdict on a damages suit of Rs1 billion against PTI Chairman Imran Khan.
Qazi Muhammad Anwar, counsel for the PTI chief, told The News that he had withdrawn the review petition from the PHC on the ground that Imran Khan wanted an early disposal of the case filed against him.
He said that he had also filed an application in the court of sessions judge on behalf of the PTI chief to decide the case without further delay. He said that under Section 14 of Defamation Ordinance 2002, the suit should be decided in three months.
On April 1, 2014, the district and sessions judge Peshawar had dismissed Imran Khan’s application for dismissal of a defamation suit against him, which he challenged in the PHC.
Qazi Muhammad Anwar, counsel for the PTI chief, had submitted the appeal for the PTI chief in which he stated that the sub-ordinate court had erred in the judgment as the defamation suit against his client was non-maintainable.
He contended that the plaintiff was removed as minister by the provincial chief minister and not by his client and, therefore, the lawsuit was not maintainable. However, on Friday citing the reasons that the case should be decided quickly, the lawyer withdrew the review petition against the decision of the sub-ordinate court about maintainability of the suit.
Qaumi Watan Party leader Bakht Baidar Khan had filed the suit in the court of district and sessions judge Peshawar. He sought Rs1 billion damages from the PTI chief for defaming him through the media by leveling allegation of corruption
against him.
On the other hand, the sessions judge had continued trial in the suit. A week ago the sacked minister, Bakht Baidar, filed an application in the case, seeking decision of the court on the basis of the available record.
In the previous hearing, Babar Khan Yousafzai, counsel for Bakht Baidar, informed the bench that the PTI chief has admitted in his reply that the minister was removed from the post for public good and the media reports about his removal were true.
He submitted that the PTI chief had made serious allegations which were reported by the media and he had to prove them in the court. Imran Khan had also leveled several allegations against the plaintiff in his written reply to the lawsuit.