LAHORE: A Lahore High Court division bench on Monday dismissed an intra-court appeal (ICA) of cricketer Khalid Latif challenging proceedings of Pakistan Cricket Board’s Anti-Corruption Tribunal on spot-fixing charges against him and a decision by a single bench.

The counsel of Khalid argued before the division bench that the single bench dismissed a writ petition of the appellants without considering many legal questions raised during the proceedings.

Opposing the proceedings into spot-fixing charges, he said the PCB anti-corruption tribunal had been acting beyond its jurisdiction.

He said the PCB anti-corruption code under which the tribunal was established had not been notified in Pakistan gazette. The counsel further argued whether the PCB chairman was empowered to constitute the tribunal. He asked the division bench to set aside the decision of the single bench and also the proceedings against the appellant pending before the anti-corruption tribunal of the PCB.

PCB’s legal advisor Taffazul Haider Rizvi argued that the constitution of the board made under ‘The Sports (Development and Control) Ordinance of 1962’ fully empowered the chairman to set-up the tribunal.

He further argued that no law restrained the PCB chairman from constituting the anti-corruption tribunal. He pointed out that no other cricketers facing the same charges challenged the jurisdiction of the tribunal except Khalid Latif.

Taffazul said the appellant wanted to delay the proceedings of the tribunal and had been trying to hide behind technicalities. He urged the bench to dismiss the appeal.

After both sides, the bench comprising Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh and Justice Sajid Mahmood Sethi dismissed the ICA of Khalid.

Khalid and four other players had been charged for breaching the PCB’s anti-corruption code during this year’s Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2017