LAHORE: The Supreme Court docket (SC) on Thursday dismissed an attraction of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan in opposition to placing out his proper of defence in a defamation go well with filed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in opposition to him.
The three-member bench heard the attraction at Supreme Court docket Lahore Registry and dismissed it with a 2-1 majority whereas upholding the trial court docket orders. Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, who was heading the bench, and Justice Amin Uddin Khan dismissed the attraction whereas Justice Ayesha A Malik dissented with their verdict.
In the course of the proceedings, Mustafa Ramday appeared on behalf of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and argued that the trial court docket lawfully struck the fitting of the petitioner (Imran Khan) to reply the interrogatories of the respondent (Shehbaz Sharif). He stated that the trial court docket handed the orders after the petitioner (Imran Khan) did not file the reply regardless of repeated alternatives. He submitted that the trial court docket performed 21 hearings from the course of submitting the reply to placing out the fitting of defence within the go well with whereas 13 adjournments had been taken as a substitute of submitting the reply on behalf of Imran Khan. He submitted that the petitioner may have refused to provide a solution to any query in his reply, including that the ultimate alternative to file a reply was additionally intentionally missed.
Nonetheless, Imran Khan’s counsel Barrister Ali Zafar submitted that the trial court docket unlawfully struck the fitting of his shopper. He submitted that the trial court docket exercised its suo motu powers to grab the fitting of the petitioner to file objections. He additional submitted that out of 23 hearings, the counsel for Imran Khan sought adjournments on 10 totally different events whereas the opponent sought adjournments on 7 events. He pleaded with the court docket to put aside the decision of the trial court docket.
Subsequently the bench, after listening to detailed arguments of the events, dismissed the attraction with a 2-1 majority and upheld the trial court docket verdict.
It’s pertinent to say right here that an Extra District and Classes Court docket had struck out Imran Khan’s proper of defence within the defamation go well with in Nov, 2022.
The Lahore Excessive Court docket had additionally dismissed an attraction of the PTI chairman in opposition to the trial court docket verdict on Dec 7.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, by the defamation go well with, had submitted that PTI chief Imran Khan alleged in a TV programme on April 26, 2017, that Rs10 billion bribe supply was made to him by Shehbaz Sharif for silence over the Panama papers case. He stated that allegations levelled in opposition to him weren’t solely false but additionally defamatory. He stated that Imran Khan additionally did not tender a publicly broadcast apology even if he was served a authorized discover in Could, 2017 for the aim. The court docket has been requested to subject a decree for restoration of Rs10 billion as compensation for the publication of defamatory content material.