KARACHI, Jan 8: Advocate Badr Valiyani was appointed as amicus curiae by a division bench of High Court of Sindh, comprising Justice Sabihuddin Ahmed and Justice Zia Pervez, in a constitutional petition filed by the Al-Rasheed Trust.

The trust moved the court against freezing of their assets by the federal government.

The action was taken against the trust on the request of the US as part of its war against terrorism.

The trust, filing a constitutional petition, maintained that trust was engaged in purely welfare activities and had no nexus with either the terrorists or so-called Jehadi organizations. When the matter came up before the bench, the bench directed the counsel for petitioner to satisfy the court on point of maintainability and that whether a “Trust” can invoke writ jurisdiction of a high court under Article 199.

The counsel for petitioner cited a case and submitted that a HC can hear a petition filed by a trust. The bench then appointed Badr Valiyani Advocate as ‘Amicus Curiae’ to assist the court on the point that “can a trust invoke writ jurisdiction of a HC”.

The bench then put off further hearing for a date to be fixed later.

The same bench also dismissed a bail application filed by an accused/applicant Zulfiqar Haider. The accused was booked by Landhi police for molesting Mst P in Mansehra Colony on 5-1- 2002.

Bail granted: A division bench of High Court of Sindh (SHC), comprising Justice S. A. Sarwana and Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany, on Tuesday granted bail to an accused Dr Khalid Ahmed against a surety of Rs1,00,000.

The accused was booked by Hyderabad police under section 295 (A). The section pertains to an offence of “deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs”.—APP