Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman’s plea deferred again

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday referred the bail matter of Jang-Geo Group Editor-in-Chief Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman to Chief Justice of Pakistan for fixing his appeal before a three-member bench.

A two-member bench of the apex court, comprising Justice Mushir Alam and Justice Munib Akhtar, resumed hearing in the appeal filed by Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman against an order passed by the Lahore High Court (LHC) dismissing his post-arrest bail petition in a case relating to a property transaction that took place 34 years ago.

Additional Prosecutor National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Haider Ali Khan requested the court to fix the instant appeal before a three-member bench of the apex court. He recalled that on September 30, a three-member bench of the apex court, while hearing the case, had referred the matter to Chief Justice of Pakistan for fixing the matter before a three-member bench, therefore, he pleaded that it would be better that the instant appeal was heard by a three-member bench.

Khwaja Haris, counsel for the Jang-Geo Group Editor-in-Chief Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, however, contended that as the chief justice of Pakistan had fixed the appeal before it, therefore, the court should continue hearing this appeal as it could hear it. "This two-member bench could hear the instant appeals," Khwaja Haris pleaded the court.

When the court was adjourning the matter until Thursday, the additional prosecutor pleaded that as their two prosecutors were sick and would not be available during the week, therefore, the matter should be adjourned until next Monday.

Justice Mushir Alam, however, asked the additional prosecutor as to what was his problem and why the other two prosecutors would not be available during the week. The NAB's additional prosecutor, however, pleaded that the matter should be adjourned for next Monday.

Meanwhile, the court adjourned the hearing until next Monday after referring the matter to the Chief Justice of Pakistan for fixing the instant appeals filed by Jang-Geo Group Editor-in-Chief Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman and his wife before a three-member bench.

Earlier, the appeal was fixed before a three-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Muneeb Akhtar and Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi. The said bench was, however, disbanded on September 30 after Justice Umar Ata Bandial recused from the bench for personal reasons. He had referred the matter to chief justice of Pakistan for fixing it to another three-member bench. Notices had been issued to the parties concerned, including the prosecutor general of NAB.

The court had also clubbed two more appeals of Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman as well as his spouse against the order of the LHC, which were pending in the Supreme Court. It is pertinent to mention here that when Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman was arrested by the NAB in March, 2020 in Lahore, he and his wife had challenged before the LHC, his illegal arrest as well as illegal detention by the anti-graft body and physical remand. The LHC had dismissed both the petitions against two CPLAs, later filed in the Supreme Court, which are pending.

It’s worth mentioning that double member bench has been hearing NAB cases. Justice Maqbool Baqir-led double bench heard the bail petition of PML-N leader Kh Saad Rafique. The bail plea of Anwar Majid was also upheld by a double bench, which was also objected to by the NAB. The NAB’s objection was rejected by the Supreme Court.