SHC RESERVES VERDICT ON PETITION CHALLENGING APPOINTMENT OF SINDH CM’S LAW ADVISOR

SINDH High Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on a petition challenging the appointment and status of the ministers being granted to Adviser to Sindh Chief Minister on Law Barrister Murtaza Wahab after all the sides completed their arguments.

The SHC division bench, headed by Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, reserved its judgment after the completion of arguments from the petitioner's counsel, the Sindh advocate general and Murtaza Wahab.

The date of judgment’s pronouncement will be fixed later. The petition was filed by Advocate Fareed Ahmed Dayo, who had questioned the status of ministers being granted to CM’s Adviser on Law Barrister Murtaza Wahab. He had submitted that Wahab was appointed the CM’s advisor and few weeks later he was given the status of minister which is the violation of Article 129 of the constitution.

The petitioner added that the law adviser was also appointed as chairman of the board of governors for law colleges in Karachi in violation of two notifications issued by the provincial government, which stated that nobody, except the education minister or vice chancellor of Karachi University can hold that position.

While defending Wahab, his counsel Advocate Makhdoom Ali Khan had argued that the chief minister had the authority to appoint adviser for consultation and call any adviser to attend cabinet meeting. “The provincial secretaries of the government departments are also called to attend the cabinet meetings as it is not a rare thing,” he added in his arguments.

SHC QUESTIONS MAINTAINABILITY OF SHARJEEL MEMON’S APPLICATION: Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday questioned the maintainability of an application of former provincial minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, seeking the court’s direction to restrain the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) from arresting him on his arrival in the country in inquiry pertaining to corruption.

Earlier this month, the SHC had granted Memon, who is living a self exile in London, an anticipatory bail in the Rs 5 billion reference filed against him and others.

According to the reference, the former Sindh information minister and 17 others had caused over Rs5.76 billion loss to the national exchequer through the embezzlement in the Sindh government's advertisement campaign on electronic media.

In his new application, Memon submitted that his liberty at stake as he still has apprehensions that he would be arrested with malafide intention on his arrival at airport. The Member of Sindh Assembly from Tharparkar’s PS 62 requested the court to restrain the NAB from arresting him.

A division bench, headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto issued notices to the federal law officer and the NAB’s prosecutor directing them to file their respective replies to the application in the next hearing.