A single bench of Balochistan High Court comprising Chief Justice Amanullah Khan Yasinzai here on Friday acquitted Balochistan National Party-Mengal (MNP-M) chief Akhtar Jan Mengal and general secretary of the party Habib Jalib, advocate, in treason cases, and ordered the concerned officials to quash the FIRs and exonerate them of the charges.
The bench acquitted the BNP-M chief in one treason case and its secretary general in two treason cases. Habib Jalib counsel contended that there was no sufficient evidence to connect him and his client with commission of the alleged offences. He argued that the treason cases had no weight as they did not deliver speeches at ghaibana Namaz-i-Janaza of Akbar Bugti in Ayub Stadium.
The applicants submitted that ex-information secretary of Jamhuri Watan Party (JWP) Amanullah Kanrani and ex-general secretary JWP Agha Shahid Bugti had already been exonerated and FIRs of similar nature had also been quashed against them.
The bench while disposing of the three criminal quashment applications ordered the officials concerned to quash the FIRs registered with New Sariab, Sariab and Civil Line police stations, and exonerated them of the charges. Akhtar Mengal and Habib Jalib had filed quashment applications in May 2007.
Meanwhile, the bench adjourned hearing of three other treason cases against Akhtar Mengal for May 9. It also adjourned hearing of treason cases against Habib Jalib, Khalid Longov, ex-MPA Akhtar Hussain Longov, Abdul Razaq Longov, Ghulam Nabi Marri, Ali Ahmed Kurd and Suhail Rajpoot advocate till May 9. The adjournment came when Habib Jalib sought time to submit judgement copy of the lower court in which co-accused had been acquitted in the same cases.
It is pertinent to mention here that Balochistan Chief Minister Muhammad Aslam Raisani had announced withdrawal of cases against Akhtar Mengal on April 21, 2008, but neither the Chief Justice nor Akhtar Mengal counsel Habib Jalib mentioned the withdrawal of the cases by the provincial government during hearing of the cases on Friday.
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