Disqualification case: IHC seeks details about properties of Raja Basharat

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Tuesday sought the details of properties of Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat in a petition seeking his disqualification.

A single bench of Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani heard the petition moved by Raja Basharat’s alleged wife, Simal Raja, seeking his disqualification.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), and Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat had already submitted their written responses in the petition seeking disqualification of the provincial minister.

During the hearing, Justice Kayani said he was authoring the judgment of this case but some information was missing in this matter.

He added that some more information was needed regarding the properties of the provincial law minister.

The counsel, Qaisar Imam, said that he could provide the court’s judgment in Khawaja Asif case to the bench. At this, Justice Kayani stated that he had read the court judgments of Khawaja Asif as well Nawaz Sharif case.

He further said he had heard the full case but some documents were needed.

Therefore, the court issued directions for the submission of documents of the properties of Raja Basharat, and deferred the hearing till Dec 7th for further proceedings in the matter.

Petitioner Simal Raja moved the petition in the IHC claiming that Basharat did not disclose his movable and immovable properties, and also concealed their monetary value.

The petitioner also contended in her petition that the provincial law minister also kept his expenditures of foreign tours secret with an ‘ill intent’.

Therefore, she prayed before the court to declare Basharat as disqualified as member of the provincial assembly of Punjab for concealing his assets.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020