KARACHI, March 16: An anti-terrorism appellate bench of the Sindh High Court gave a last opportunity to the appellants in the Sheraton bomb blast case on Thursday to engage a counsel and adjourned hearing of their appeals to a date in office.

Asif and Rizwan were tried and sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court of Karachi for causing the blast, which claimed the lives of 11 Frenchmen working on an Agosta class submarine project and of two Pakistanis as a suicide member rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the coach carrying the victims left the hotel. They were allegedly associated with Harakatul Mujahideen Al Alami.

The convicts challenged their conviction and sentences in the high court, but have not been represented by a lawyer on several dates. The appellate bench, comprising Justices Mohammad Afzal Soomro and Rehmat Hussain Jafri, afforded them a last chance to engage a counsel, otherwise, the court would ask one to represent them on state expense.

Another division bench, comprising Justices Ghulam Rabbani and Zia Pervez, dismissed a writ petition filed by Ms Shabana against the SHO of Gulistan-i-Jauhar and ASI Mohammad Nawaz Baloch, investigating officer of a case against her.