LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) dismissed as non-maintainable a petition filed against the acquittal of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Hamza Shehbaz in a money-laundering case.
Chief Justice Aalia Neelum of LHC upheld the objections raised by the Registrar’s Office. The Chief Justice said several years had passed since the acquittal, asking whether any person could file an appeal after four or five years and whether the court should create a new law for this purpose.
The petitioner’s counsel, Amir Saeed Raan, argued an appeal could be filed in the light of higher judiciary decisions and presented a written judgment in support. However, the court observed the cited judgment related to custody matters and was not applicable to this case.
The court remarked there was no justification for delay in challenging the 2022 acquittal. It further said merely because a lawyer later discovers new points after reviewing a case, old decisions cannot be reopened.
The petitioner’s counsel contended Shehbaz Sharif, Hamza Shehbaz, and other accused had been summoned to face trial but were acquitted without recording evidence, which was against the principles of justice.
The Registrar’s Office had objected to the petition that was filed after several years and explained that the petitioner was not an aggrieved party; therefore, the petition was not maintainable.
The petition had challenged trial court’s decision to acquit Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Hamza Shehbaz in a Rs16 billion money-laundering case. It argued that on November 12, 2022, the Special Central Court had acquitted them even before formal charges were framed, which was against the law and principles of justice.
