ISLAMABAD, March 8: The Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court (IHC) Justice Mohammad Anwar Khan Kasi on Friday dismissed another bail petition of Rao Shakeel Ahmed, the main accused in Haj corruption case.

It was his fifth bail application since his arrest in 2010 by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

Rao Shakeel had first filed the bail petition with the special court of Rawalpindi after completing more than a year in prison, but it was rejected in February 2012.

The same court, however, granted the bail to former federal minister for religious affairs, Hamid Saeed Kazmi, another accused in Haj corruption case, on August 27, 2012.

In October 2012, he approached the IHC but it rejected the appeal against the decision of the special court. He then moved the Supreme Court but it too did not entertain his application.

In February 2013, Rao Shakeel made another attempt to seek his bail on some new grounds and filed a petition in the special court but again it was dismissed.

In the IHC, his counsel Ahsanuddin Sheikh adopted before Justice Kasi that the trial court had granted bail to Mr Kazmi but denied the same to his client Rao Shakeel.

Special prosecutor of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali on the other hand informed the court that despite being accused in the same case, the two are facing entirely different offences and charges.

According to the charge sheet prepared by the court in Haj corruption case, Rao Shakeel and Raja Aftabul Islam were indicted under sections 109, 409, 420, 468, 471 of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and 5 (2) 1947 of Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA) for fraud, cheating, misuse of authority and causing loss to the national exchequer and the public at large.

He pointed out that under section 497 of CrPC the under trial accused may be granted bail, if the delay has been caused by the prosecution agency but in this particular case the accused had delayed the trial because on several occasions they had requested for adjournment of hearing on various grounds.