LAHORE: A Lahore High Court division bench on Wednesday dismissed for not being maintainable an appeal challenging a single bench order wherein request to initiate criminal proceedings against former president Pervez Musharraf for allegedly ridiculing the judiciary was rejected.

Former secretary of Lahore High Court Bar Association, Rana Asadullah Khan, had filed the appeal with a prayer to set aside the dismissal decision of the single bench and initiate contempt proceedings against Musharraf. He said Musharraf in a television interview repeatedly claimed that [the] then army chief Raheel Sharif managed things for him against court’s proceedings under treason charges and secured a safe exit from the country.

The lawyer said Musharraf candidly claimed he was saved by influencing the courts and said it was quite unfortunate [that] the judiciary was not independent in the country.

He said the former president in his interview also hoped that the judiciary might start doing justice as behind the scene they (courts) work under pressure.

Advocate Khan asked the court to direct the federal law ministry to initiate an inquiry against Musharraf for scandalising and ridiculing the institution of judiciary and also order Pemra to take action against the news channel for showing derogatory programme against the judiciary. He also sought cancellation of registration of All Pakistan Muslim League, a political party of Musharraf, for violating Political Parties Order, 2002 by working against the integrity and sovereignty of Pakistan.

The division bench comprising Justice Ayesha A. Malik and Justice Jawad Hassan dismissed the appeal and upheld the decision of the single bench.

Notice to home dept

The LHC issued a notice to the Punjab home department on an application of Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed and other leaders challenging a fresh order by the department extending their detention for another 30 days.

Before the hearing was adjourned till Oct 2, Justice Syed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi questioned as to how one could be detained for collecting hides of sacrificial animals – one of the grounds taken by the government to justify detention of the JuD leaders.

The judge said the government should have stopped the petitioners’ organisations from collecting hides if the act was illegal.

Petitioners’ counsel AK Dogar had argued the government detained the JuD leaders on the basis of mere apprehensions. He said under the law, no presumption and assumption could give rise to any apprehension unless it was supported by evidence.

He argued an order for preventive detention had to satisfy the requirements laid down by the Supreme Court in its many judgments, but in the instant case the government had committed blatant violation of laws. He said imprisonment without trial and conviction was prima facie unlawful and unconstitutional.

The home department previously told the court that activities of JuD leaders, if released, will pose great threat to public safety and cause breach of public order. It said cases had been registered against Falah-i-Insaniat Foundation, a sister organisatison of JuD, for collecting hides of sacrificial animals on Eidul Azha. It said the detainees also launched a campaign for their political party, which was still not registered with the Election Commission.

Published in Dawn, September 28th, 2017