KARACHI, Dec 31: A full bench of the Sindh High Court dismissed on Wednesday a writ petition moved by PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari to question the validity of the Ehtesab Act, 1997.

Citing the federation, former chief ehtesab commissioner Ghulam Mujaddid Mirza and the defunct ehtesab cell/bureau chief Senator Saifur Rehman as respondents, the petition, argued by Advocate K. M. Nadeem, was heard by a three-member bench, comprising Justices S. Ahmed Sarwana, Zahid Kurban Alavi and Shabbir Ahmed in October and November, 2002.

The bench had reserved its judgment, which was announced by a vacation division bench, comprising Justices Sarmad Jalal Osmany and Rehmat Hussain Jaferi on Wednesday. An identical petition by the petitioner's wife and former premier Benazir Bhutto was withdrawn about six months back.

Authored by Justice Ahmed, the judgment upheld the argument advanced by deputy attorney-general Syed Zaki Mohammad and noted that on promulgation of the National Accountability Bureau Ordinance in 1999, the chief ehtesab commissioner and the chairman of the ehtesab cell/bureau ceased to hold offices and the four main reliefs sought by the petitioner became infructuous.

As regards other reliefs, the judgment referred to a 1973 Lahore High Court verdict declaring that "unless some action adversely affecting a person's right or interest is taken under an enactment, rule, instrument or memorandum, a writ petition cannot be filed to challenge its vires on the mere ground that some action in pursuance of it may at some time be taken in the future against the petitioner".

The judgment pointed out that the petitioner had neither faced his trial under the Ehtesab Act nor he was facing any trial under the NAB Ordinance within the jurisdiction of the Sindh High Court.

Under Article 199 of the Constitution, a high court is not to pronounce on the validity of laws or notifications merely as an academic exercise. The jurisdiction to examine the validity of a law could be invoked only when a person is aggrieved, that is to say, adversely affected by it.

The judgment also agreed with the DAG's submission that the continuation of any proceedings initiated under the Ehtesab Act "may continue under the NAB Ordinance if the cause of action continues and the same can be decided under the provisions of the new law". He referred to Section 27 of the Sindh Rented Premises Ordinance by way of illustration.

ALLIANCE MOTORS: The Sindh High Court on Wednesday issued its official assignee a notice in an application filed by his co- liquidator to specify the amount made available to him by the National Accountability Bureau for disbursement to the depositors of the defunct Alliance Motors and T.J. Ibrahim.