Pakistan’s Supreme Court has issued notice to former Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as it reopens a case related to a controversial ruling by former provincial assembly deputy speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari.
The notice was given as part of a review filed by former CM Hamza Shahbaz, who had challenged the court’s earlier verdict that set aside the vice president’s ruling.
During the hearing, Justice Aminuddin Khan asked if the case had become irrelevant.
Hamza Shahbaz’s lawyer, Haris Azmat, argued that it remained important, pointing to previous notices issued to all parties by the constitutional court.
Judge Muhammad Ali Mazhar asked about Elahi’s representation and noted his status as a defendant in the case.
The Supreme Court had earlier overturned the vice president’s decision, which was instrumental in the election of Hamza Shahbaz as Punjab chief minister.
Elahi will be formally charged on January 7 in a corruption case
An anti-terrorism court charged seven accused with corruption related to development projects and summoned former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on January 7 to charge him in the case.
The court issued a written order charging Khan Bhatti and others. The court stated that all the accused in the same case are accused at the same time as per practice, but in this case the court finds it difficult to see all the accused in the same hearing. The court mentioned that Bhatti had missed the court hearing on medical grounds in the previous hearing and Pervaiz Elahi requested absence from the court hearing on medical grounds since Saturday’s hearing.
However, to meet the demands of justice, the court considers it necessary to prosecute the accused who are present in court and will prosecute the other accused in the subsequent hearing.
The court indicted Muhammad Khan Bhatti, Khalid Mehmood Chatha, Asif Mehmood, Naeem Iqbal, Muhammad Asghar and Asad Ali and summoned Pervaiz Elahi on January 7.
