January 10, 2003	Friday	Ziqa’ad 6, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 9: The Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed a former Sindh minister Ali Nawaz Shah to contest Senate polls.

He was disqualified to contest general elections for 10 years on the ground that his act of depositing the alleged money, would be “deemed” that he had entered into plea bargain.

The bench comprised Justice Mian Mohammad Ajmal, Justice Hamid Ali Mirza and Justice Mohammad Nawaz Abbasi.

Abdul Hafeez Pirzada appearing on behalf of the petitioner stated that his client had deposited money as surety for bail and that too under protest and it could not be “deemed that he had entered into plea bargain with the NAB.”

He further submitted that the petitioner never pleaded guilty, nor did he file a request for plea bargain. The counsel for National Accountability Bureau, Raja Bashir, argued that since the petitioner had deposited the money, it was a confession of the crime he was accused of.