20000418

Appellate bench

to hear

Farooquis' appeal

KARACHI: An appellate bench of Sindh High Court Sindh (SHC) comprising Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar and Justice Wahid Bux Brohi on Monday admitted for regular hearing appeal filed by former Chairman of Pakistan Steel Mills Dr Usman Farooqui his wife Anisa Farooqui and daughter Sharmila Farooqui.

The appeals were filed under section 32 of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Ordinance, 1999 against judgement handed out on April 12, 2000 by an Accountability Court headed by judge Javed Alam, who held all the three guilty in a corruption case worth Rs 39.50 million. The appellants were awarded five-year term each besides confiscation of the alleged ill gotten money.

When the matter was called Barrister Ch Aitezaz Ahsan assisted by Raza Hashmi advocate submitted initial arguments.

Aitezaz, a leading counsel for appellants also moved two miscellaneous applications seeking suspension of the sentence and to enlarge the appellants on personal bonds.

Ahsan referring to the section 426 of Cr P C submitted before the bench that according to this section, the bench can suspend the sentence, grant bail to the appellants or order their release on personal bonds.

He also referred to NAB ordinance and said that the new law restricts grant of bail of the accused/appellants but remaining two options of suspending an impugned judgement/sentence and release of the accused on personal bonds are still with the bench.

He requested the court to suspend the sentence and to order release of the appellants on personal bond/or surety.

The bench after hearing him issued notices to the state for April 24.

The same bench also adjourned till April 20, hearing of two different appeals preferred by Ramesh M Udeshi, a former Sindh Secretary Land Utilisation against his conviction and sentence in two corruption cases.

Accused/appellant Udeshi was sentenced by an Accountability Court, Karachi to serve seven-year imprisonment each for misusing his official position and causing loss to national exchequer.

According to the prosecution accused moved two summaries on applications submitted by a political figure Ghulam Mustafa Memon to the then Sindh Chief Minister Syed Abdullah Shah (declared proclaimed absconder in the matter). The land measuring 5 acres was allotted on the basis of the summary at throw away prices.

An ehtesab reference was filed before the Sindh Ehtesab bench but during pendency of the trial the NAB Ordinance came and the case was transferred to Accountability Court, which convicted the appellant/accused.ÑAPP