LAHORE: A Lahore High Court (LHC) division bench on Tuesday dismissed an appeal by former federal minister Fawad Chaudhry against rejection of his acquittal plea in a May 9 case in Faisalabad.

A counsel for the former minister argued that the petitioner was nominated in the case a year and a half after the alleged incident and the anti-terrorism court (ATC) had only two witnesses against him.

He said that there were many contradictions in the statements of the prosecution witnesses, yet the trial court had dismissed the acquittal plea. He asked the bench to declare the ATC’s decision null and void.

Chief Justice Aalia Neelum, who headed the bench, asked the counsel to clearly narrate the flaws, if any, in the impugned verdict.

“If you say the witnesses support your stance, then why are you worried?” the chief justice said. She advised the counsel to wait for the final decision of the trial court.

After hearing the arguments, the bench dismissed the appeal.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2025