SC orders court to decide Benazir’s case on merit

By Mohammad Kamran

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday disposed off an appeal of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto against her trial for making allegedly illegal appointments in the PIA and directed the trial court to decide the case on merit.

The SC bench, consisting of Chief Justice Sheikh Riaz Ahmed, Justice Qazi Muhammad Farooq and Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, also directed the accountability court judge not to consider an order by judges of the Sindh High Court for seizure of Ms Bhutto’s assets.

The SC said Ms Bhutto would have the right to appeal in the apex court if the accountability court passed an adverse decision against her. Senator Farooq H Naek and Advocate Abdul Hafeez Lakho appeared on behalf of the former premier, while Advocate Muhammad Jaffer Hashmi represented the National Accountability Bureau.

A corruption reference is pending against Ms Bhutto in an accountability court for making illegal appointments in the Pakistan International Airlines Corporation when she was the prime minister. An officer of the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, Najmul Hasan, is also being tried in the reference. The trial is almost over, but the judegment was delayed because Ms Bhutto filed an appeal in the SC against the reference. Benazir had maintained in her appeal that the reference was an example of her political victimisation by the government.

CJ to take up jirga murder case today: The chief justice of Pakistan Sheikh Riaz Ahmed will today (Friday) take up the case of a couple that were killed after a tribal jirga condemned them for marrying on their own accord.

On October 16 Justice Ahmed summoned separate reports from Sanghar District, Sessions judge, the Sindh Inspector General of Police, the district police officer (DPO) and the local station house officer (SHO).

Sources told Daily Times that Sanghar DPO Ali Sher Jhakrani, SHO Zahid Ahmed Nasir and Investigation Officer Jabbar Ali have arrived in Islamabad to appear before the chief justice on Friday. The Sanghar District and Sessions judge has also submitted his judicial report to the supreme court containing statements from the heirs of the deceased and witnesses.

The execution took place in Sanghar District where Shazia Khaskheli and Muhammad Hasan Solangi married without their families’ consent. The marriage was opposed by the Khaskheli clan, to which Ms Shazia belonged.

It was reported that Ms Shazia and Mr Solangi were tortured and on October 8 were taken to Nizamani Mohalla where Mr Solangi was confined and tortured in a landlord’s house, while Ms Shazia was kept in her grandfather’s house.

When Ms Shazia was picked up by the jirga’s men, her father resisted and contended that he had pardoned his daughter, but the men brought the couple to a drain where they were shot.

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