LAHORE, May 8: A division bench of the Lahore High Court on Thursday allowed time to the state for producing the incriminating evidence against the alleged professional misconduct of a dismissed judge of an anti-terrorism court.

The state had filed an intra-court appeal with a division bench against the single bench’s directions issued to it for paying the six-month salary and emoluments to former ATC judge Ehsan Sabri, who was dismissed six months before his service contract expiry on professional misconduct charges.

The single bench had allowed the petition of the former judge against his dismissal and ordered the payment of his salary as the only available remedy since the term of his service contract had lapsed till the decision of the petition and he could not be reinstated.

Mr Sabri had argued in this petition that under the provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997, the consultation of the chief justice was a must for the removal of any ATC judge before the expiry of the service contract. He alleged that in his case no such consultation was made and the governor issued his dismissal order on his own.

While moving the division bench against the previous verdict, Deputy Attorney-General Dr Danishwar Malik argued that there was sufficient incriminating material available with the federal ministry of law and he needed time to get and produce it in the court. He pleaded the court to grant time, which was allowed.

To a court query, the DAG submitted that the CJ had been consulted by the authorities concerned before removing the former judge.

He said the petitioner had presented ‘frivolous’ grounds in his appeal to the single bench.