IHC declares contempt case against Rana Shamim ‘ineffective’

ISLAMABAD: Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar has dismissed the contempt-of-court case initiated over the news of Supreme Appellate Court Gilgit-Baltistan former chief judge Rana Shamim’s affidavit regarding the Panama case being published in The News, terming the case “ineffective”.

The court ended the contempt proceedings against Shamim, along with those against The News Editor-in-Chief Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, Editor Aamir Ghauri and Editor Investigation Ansar Abbasi.

During the hearing, Shamim did not appear in court, but the lawyer for The News editors was present. Advocate Aamir Abdullah Abbasi argued that a response had been submitted on behalf of the media representatives, explaining that the news was published according to journalistic principles and included the viewpoint of former chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar.

Advocate Abbasi told the court that during the contempt hearing, Shamim had confirmed his affidavit and the signature on it. He argued that since the case had been scheduled for hearing after a considerable time and had effectively become moot, it should be dismissed.

Deputy Attorney General Arshad Kiani clarified that charges were only framed against Shamim, not against the media representatives. Shamim had also submitted his unconditional apology to the court. In the light of this, CJ Dogar decided to dismiss the case.

Shamim had written an affidavit discussing ex-CJP Nisar’s statements regarding Nawaz Sharif’s appeals against his conviction in the Panama case, which was published in The News. This led to the initiation of the contempt-of-court case by then IHC CJ Athar Minallah. During the hearing, Shamim had confirmed his affidavit and his signature on it, after which he faced contempt charges.

In a written response, senior journalist Ansar Abbasi stood by his news article and requested the withdrawal of the show-cause notice. The news regarding Shamim’s affidavit was published on November 15, 2021, which initiated the contempt proceedings.