SHC dismisses Sharjeel’s bail plea

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Monday dismissed the bail application of former information minister Sharjeel Inam Memon after taking into account the opinion of a private hospital’s medical board, which stated that the Pakistan Peoples Party leader’s condition was not life-threatening and is not likely to cause disability.

The court, however, observed that Memon may be treated in a private hospital of his choice for required physiotherapy and hydrotherapy at his own expense and then returned to jail after each treatment.

An SHC division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Iqbal Kalhoro observed that judges are not doctors and were under a duty to ensure that the petitioner does not suffer any permanent disability because of lack of treatment, but the same time not to open the floodgates to bail on medical grounds to all persons in jail through potentially dubious and engineered medical reports.

Memon, the former minister, along with former information department officials Zulfiqar Ali Shalwani, Sarang Latif and others along with advertising companies’ representatives were booked by the National Accountability Bureau in a Rs5.78 billion reference for committing corruption in the awarding of advertisements of the provincial government’s awareness campaigns in electronic media.

Memon’s counsel had sought bail from the SHC on medical grounds submitting that his client was facing ailment and required medical treatment and surgery as recommended by the medical board constituted by the trial court.

He submitted that the high court had on March 2 rejected petitioner’s bail observing that the matter pertained to medical treatment and hospitalisation was taken up by the Supreme Court. He submitted that the Supreme Court had disposed of the suo motu proceedings with regard to hospitalisation of the former information minister after withdrawing the notices against doctors who opined that Memon should be treated in hospital.