ISLAMABAD, May 18: The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed the review petition of a former member of the National Assembly in a corruption reference. The three-member bench comprising Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, Justice Rana Bhagwandas and Justice Syaid Ashad, however, allowed Haji Kabir Khan to approach the Peshawar High Court for bail on health grounds.

Haji Kabir was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment and fined Rs350 million by an accountability court for embezzlement in octroi contracts. Later, the PHC reduced the sentences to two years’ imprisonment and Rs21 million fine.

The petitioner, who remained Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) MNA from 1997 to 1999, was arrested in 2000 on allegations of huge embezzlement in various taxes between 1990 and 1998.

Senior lawyer Abid Hassan Manto, the counsel for Haji Kabir, told the court that his client was a cardiac patient and had undergone bypass surgery. He said the petitioner was also a diabetic patient and was suffering from Hepatitis-B and hypertension.