MUZAFFARABAD: Reviewing its earlier decision, the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Supreme Court has reduced the sentence of a former ruling PML-N lawmaker, rendering him eligible to contest elections in future, it was announced on Monday.

On Sept 15, 2019, a day after Mirpur was hit by a devastating earthquake, an apex court bench, comprising the then Chief Justice Chaudhry Ibrahim Zia and senior judge Raja Saeed Akram Khan (now acting CJ), had convicted and punished Chaudhry Mohammad Saeed with imprisonment till the rising of the court for “deliberately encroaching upon state land and thus committing contempt of an apex court judgment”.

The bench had also disqualified him from being the Legislative Assembly member for the next five years.

The punishment was awarded by the bench on an application, filed by one Haji Javed Akram of Mirpur, in October 2018, wherein he had alleged that Mr Saeed had been “unlawfully occupying more than one kanal and 8 marla crown land along with his house in the town “in an act that amounted to infringement of an earlier judgment of the AJK apex court.”

Mr Saeed had defeated PTI regional chief Barrister Sultan Mahmood in the 2016 general elections and was later inducted into the cabinet as minister for sports, youth and culture. After his disqualification, the by-election held on Sept 24 last year was contested by his son, who lost it to Mr Mahmood.

In the meanwhile, Mr Saeed had also filed a review petition to the extent of the period of his disqualification.

After the retirement of CJ Zia on March 31, the petition was heard by acting CJ Raja Saeed Akram and Justice Ghulam Mustafa Mughal, who also retired the other day on attaining the age of superannuation.

In the judgment that was announced on Monday the bench observed that it was discretion of the court in the contempt proceedings to pardon or punish the contemnor keeping in view the nature and gravity of the act done as well as the facts and circumstances of the case.

“It’s a settled principle of law that the punishment should be compatible with the allegation. Keeping in view the overall facts and circumstances of the case the punishment already served out by the petitioner, including imprisonment till the rising of the court, loss of membership and ineligibility to contest by-election, is compatible to the offence,” the bench noted.

“Therefore, while exercising the inherent powers of the court in the interest of justice, the remaining period of disqualification is reduced to the period already undergone,” it declared.

Advocate Sardar Abdul Raziq Khan represented the petitioner and advocate Khalid Rasheed Chaudhry appeared on behalf of the respondent.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2020