Imran submits written response in NAB amendments case

ISLAMABAD: Imran Khan on Wednesday submitted his response to the Intra Court Appeals, challenging the verdict of the Supreme Court declaring as unconstitutional some of the provisions of the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) 1999.

The PTI drew the court’s attention to the observations contained in a majority judgment of the Supreme Court reported as “In the matter of Action against Distribution of Development Funds to MNAS/MPAs by Prime Minister” (PLD 2021 SC 440)”.

In the said judgment, Khan submitted, it was observed by the court that in order to uphold the principle of unbias-ness and impartiality, it would be in the interest of justice that Justice Qazi Faez Isa (as he then was, now Chief Justice) should not hear matters involving him.

On June 6, the Supreme Court had reserved the verdict in the Intra Court Appeals (ICAs) filed by the federal and provincial governments against the apex court’s three-member bench judgment delivered last year on September 15 by a majority 2-1 by former chief justice Umer Ata Bandial.

In 2022, the PDM government made amendments to the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO). However, Imran challenged it in the apex court stating that the amendments

represented an unprecedented and egregious example of legislative manipulation.

“There is no parallel anywhere in the world, not even in banana republics, where laws have been crafted specifically to absolve corrupt individuals of their wrongdoings. Those engaged in corrupt practices have exploited these person-specific amendments to shield their ill-gotten assets, using parliament as a tool for personal gain,” Imran submitted.