PHC grants protective bail to Omar Ayub, others

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday disposed of petitions filed by Opposition Leader Omar Ayub, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Deputy Speaker Surraiyya Bibi, provincial Minister Faisal Tarkai, MPAs Shahram Tarkai and Faisal Amin, seeking details of cases registered against them.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Sahibzada Asadullah and Justice Abdul Fayyaz granted protective bail to the petitioners until April 8 and directed the authorities not to arrest them in any registered case during this period.

Alam Khan Adeenzai and Rab Nawaz appearing for the petitioners informed the court that cases had been registered against their clients in Islamabad and other places, but the authorities were not providing the details.

National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor, Hashmat Jahangir, told the court that there were no cases against the petitioners in NAB. The deputy attorney general stated that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had no cases against them. However, the court was informed that Omar Ayub was facing eight cases in Islamabad, while Faisal Amin had three. Case details against the deputy speaker were also provided.

Omar Ayub informed the court that more than 70 cases had been registered against him and requested additional time to appear before the relevant courts.

After receiving details from federal and other parties, the court disposed of the petitions and directed the petitioners to approach the respective courts in Punjab and other provinces for cases registered there.

The court granted protective bail to National Assembly former speaker and MNA Asad Qaiser until April 8 and to provincial minister Meena Khan Afridi until March 11.The court sought a report from the federal government and other relevant parties and barred authorities from arresting the petitioners until the next hearing.

During the proceedings, the court was informed that the authorities were not providing details of the cases, which necessitated the filing of the petitions.Justice Sahibzada Asadullah directed the attorney general’s office to clarify whether the required reports had been submitted.

Deputy Attorney General Daniyal Khan sought time to compile and submit the report.Asad Qaiser, appearing before the court, stated that he performed Umrah every year and intended to do so during Ramadan this year. He requested an extension of his protective bail to facilitate his travel. The court extended his protective bail until April 8 and granted Meena Khan Afridi bail until March 11, directing that none of the petitioners be arrested in any registered case until the next hearing.