Production orders of MNAs, MPAs challenged in SC

ISLAMABAD: A petition was filed in the Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday challenging the issuance of production orders of members of national and provincial assemblies members arrested over corruption charges.

The petitioner, Asif, in his petition, stated that the speakers of National Assembly and provincial assemblies had issued the production orders though the accused legislators had been given in the custody of national Accountability Court on physical remand by courts.

He sought nullification of the production orders of members of the National Assembly (MNAs) Asif Ali Zardari, Faryal Talpur, Mian Shehbaz Sharif and Khawaja Saad Rafique, Sindh Assembly Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani and member of the Punjab Assembly (MPA) Hamza Shehbaz, citing that such orders could not be issued when the accused were under physical remand of law enforcement.

The accountability courts had awarded physical remands of all accused who were arrested on corruption allegations.

The petitioner pleaded that the production orders were a systematic order which could not be seen in isolation from court orders.