ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed former Sindh information minister Sharjeel Memon to raise fresh ground before the Sindh High Court to seek bail in Rs5.76 billion corruption references.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa disposed of the petition with the understanding that the minister as well as his officers and officials of certain advertisement agencies will approach the high court with new grounds where some petitions seeking bail on medical grounds were pending.

Subsequently, the petitioners withdrew their bail petition to avoid consequences of any adverse observation that may prejudice their cases if they insist for a decision on merit.

The court had taken up bail appeals of Sharjeel Memon, former Sindh information secretary Zulfikar Ali Shallwani and directors and shareholders of advertisement agencies namely Gulzar Ali, Salman Mansoor and Umer Shah­zad facing corruption references.

The petitioners withdrew their appeals after NAB prosecutor Nasir Mehmood Mughol told the court that the accused caused a financial loss to the national exchequer through excessive billings for initiating awareness campaigns against illegal weapons and holding Sindh Festival in 2013.

The directors of different advertising agencies, the prosecutor argued, approached the then minister without any media plan, presentation, or even pre-qualification, who in complicity with the agencies issued directions to Mr Shallwani to immediately process the project, which resulted in the release of funds the very next day.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2018