HYDERABAD, Oct 17: Former Acting Governor of Sindh and Speaker of Sindh Assembly, Nawab Mirza, surrendered before the Seventh Additional District Judge in Mir Gardens case here on Wednesday and submitted his apology for remaining absent from the court hearing in the case.

The court framed charges against him and he pleaded not guilty.

Earlier, the court had issued non-bailable warrants on numerous occasions but Mr Mirza did not attend the proceedings of the case. On Wednesday, he along with his counsel, Aslam Pervaiz, argued the case. The case has now been fixed for October 31.

He contended that the court had exempted him from hearing when he was Sindh Assembly Speaker and Acting Sindh Governor vide its order dated July 10, 1998. He pleaded that it was mandatory that he should have been informed about the cancellation of the exemption order.

The court informed him that he was exempted from the court hearing because of his status of being Sindh Assembly Speaker and Sindh Governor. He submitted a hand written apology that his absence should be condoned.

He undertook to attend the court regularly in future.

The court accepted his apology and undertaking.

The Mir Gardens case was lodged at Fort police station on April 24, 1995.