SHC seeks details of pending cases against Babar Ghauri

The Sindh High Court directed the federal, provincial law officers, National Accountability Bureau and the prosecutor general the province on Tuesday to file statements on whether any inquiry or an FIR was pending against the Muttahida Qaumi Movement leader and former senator Babar Ghauri.

Ghauri had moved the court, asking that details of pending cases against him be brought before the court of the law. His counsel submitted that his client feared that he would be again arrested when he returned to Pakistan on the basis of some unknown inquiries.

The counsel said NAB and the federal and provincial governments may be directed to tell the court whether any inquiries or cases were pending against him so that he may get protective or transitory bail prior to his return to the country.

A high court division bench, headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, issued notices directing the authorities to file statements on whether any inquiry was pending against Ghauri. The court directed the law officers to file their comments by October 4. The former Muttahida senator had already left the country after getting bail in pending cases from a trial court last month.

Ghauri, who was also the federal minister for ports and shipping and a senator in the former PPP coalition government, has been facing cases before an anti-terrorism court on charges of money laundering and terrorism financing to the MQM-London and illegal appointments to the Karachi Port Trust.

The petitioner’s counsel had earlier said that the petitioner had been earlier granted transitory protective bail in two criminal cases pending against him to surrender before the trial courts; however, he was booked in another case upon his arrival in Karachi.