Supreme Court Monday asked media for factual reporting on the Hudaibiya Paper Mills case. It issued directives to Pemra to ensure that no broadcast is allowed to discuss merits and demerits of the case in talk shows. A three-member bench led by Justice Mushir Alam passed the order while hearing an appeal of National Accountability Bureau against the 2014 decision of the Lahore High Court that quashed the reference of Rs 1.2 billion against the Sharif family.
Appearing before the bench, Deputy Prosecutor General NAB Imranul Haq sought adjournment of the case till the appointment of prosecutor general NAB. This port has been lying vacant since the retirement of Waqas Qadeer Dar last month. The bench turned down the plea, observing that every case is important for the court.
During the course of proceedings, the bench observed that verdict of Justice Asif Saeed Khan Khosa, one of the members of the five-judge bench which had delivered judgment in the Panama Papers case on April 20, is the minority judgment. The prosecutor submitted that the NAB has been asked to file an appeal to reopen the Hudaibiya case; to which, a member of the bench, Justice Qazi Faez Isa, asked Imranul Haq to cite any reference from the Panama Papers verdict about directions. However, Haq said no specific directions were there.
Justice Qazi Faiz Isa said: “We are saying to you repeatedly: don’t read the minority judgment. You’re wasted so much time on this.”
