Tareen disqualification case: You don’t have anything on merit, SC tells Tareen’s lawyer

ISLAMABAD: A three-member bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, headed by Chief Justice Saqib Nisar, started hearing the disqualification case against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Secretary-General Jahangir Tareen on Wednesday.

The chief justice observed that the court was examining the cases of Jahangir Tareen and PTI chief Imran Khan closely and would decide them together.The CJ gave these remarks while heading a three-member bench hearing a case filed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Hanif Abbasi, seeking disqualification of Imran Khan and Jahangir Tareen over non-disclosure of assets and owning offshore companies.

Sikandar Bashir, counsel for Tareen, informed the court his client was the executive director of a private firm, JDW, and was not a minister when the firm’s shares were purchased. He said Tareen had resigned from the post of executive director and then became a JDW board member.

The CJ inquired how much amount was spent on purchasing the firm’s shares. Bashir said Allah Yar, an old employee of Tareen, had purchased the shares worth Rs13 million and sold them against Rs46 million and earned a profit of Rs33 million. The CJ said: “You don’t have anything on merit and want to save your client through law technicalities.”

Justice Umer Atta Bandial said Tareen used the specific information for his own interest. On this, Bashir said Tareen enjoyed the same constitutional rights as any common citizen.Akram Sheikh said Tareen did not challenge both SECP clauses in his written reply.

Bashir said the clauses were not part of a mini bill as Section 15-A and 15-E had no link with the mini bill, adding that money was recovered from Tareen under the SECP clauses. The two clauses were against the Constitution, so Tareen could not be declared guilty. The hearing was adjourned until Thursday.