SHC grants bail to Mohsin Baig in money laundering case

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Friday granted bail to journalist Mohsin Baig in a money laundering and bribery case.

The petitioner had submitted in the plea that he was being politically victimised at the behest of the federal communication minister over his reported remarks in media. Baig’s counsel Abdul Lateef Khosa submitted that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had in a mala fide manner booked the petitioner in a case pertaining to money laundering and bribing FIA officials without issuing any notice to the petitioner.

He submitted that the petitioner was falsely implicated by the FIA and Islamabad police in two false cases, in one of which he had been granted bail. He added that his client apprehended that he could be booked in further cases.

Khosa submitted that the petitioner neither was a public servant nor had any connection with the money laundering case against Abdul Wasay and others, and he was implicated in the case merely on exposing illegalities of the FIA officials. He sought quashment of criminal proceedings in the money laundering and bribing case.

To a court query with regard to evidence against the petitioner, a federal law officer sought time to justify the FIA inquiry. An SHC’s division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Iqbal Kalhoro observed that prima facie no evidence showing the nexus of the petitioner with alleged offence was available.

The SHC observed that the FIA was directed to file comments on the petition on February 28 but the petitioner had been shown arrested in the FIR. The bench observed that the FIA acted prima facie in a mala fide manner. The high court observed that it was question of the fundamental right of the petitioner guaranteed under the constitution which the court would safeguard in exercise of constitutional jurisdiction.

The high court granted time to the federal law officer for preparation of the case and adjourned the hearing till March 11. The court in the meantime granted bail to the petitioner in sum of Rs100,000, and directed the attorney general of Pakistan to appear before the court to assist the court in the case.