KARACHI: Pakistan People’s Party leader Dr. Asim Hussain was released today (Friday) after almost 19 months in detention in cases related to terror facilitation and corruption.
His release came to effect after he submitted his two passports in the Sindh High Court (SHC) as earlier sought buy the court.
“Dr. Asim Hussain’s medical condition is however not stable”, claimed his Lawyer.
The close aide of former president Asif Ali Zardari was shifted to Dr. Ziauddin Hospital amid high security in Clifton from Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC).
The release orders came after 19 months of detention when the counsels of Dr. Asim submitted two surety bonds of 2.5 million each in the court along with his passports.
Following the release orders, Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari congratulated Dr. Asim for getting released after 19 months in detention.
“Dr. Asim Hussain went through severe mental and physical sufferings”, said Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
One more petition from PPP leader Dr. Asim will reportedly be filed on Monday at the SHC seeking removal of his name from the Exit Control List (ECL).
RELEASE DEFERRED
The release of former petroleum minister was deferred yesterday (Thursday) due to non-submission of his two passports in SHC on court orders.
Justice Aftab Gorar of SHC had granted him bail on Wednesday while directing the accused to deposit two 2.5 million surety bonds for both cases along with original passports. He also directed the interior ministry not to issue him a fresh passport until further orders and to place his name on the Exit Control List (ECL).
Following the bail orders, PPP workers had reached in Jinnah Hospital on Wednesday with a truck to take the PPP Karachi president back to his home.
However, he could not be released immediately after the bail orders.
MEGA CORRUPTION CHARGES
An accountability court last year had indicted Dr Hussain, ex-petroleum secretary Ejaz Chaudhry and others in an over Rs460 billion corruption reference.
Dr Hussain was taken into custody on August 26, 2015 by Rangers on different corruption charges.
Earlier, a division bench of SHC had issued split orders over Dr. Asim’s bail petition on February 2.
Justice Farooq Shah had accepted the bail plea filed by the accused while Justice Karim Khan Agha had rejected the bail plea.
The bail plea later was referred to a referee judge for final orders. The referee judge, Justice Aftab Ahmed Gorar, yesterday granted bail to the accused.
Dr Asim faced charges of misusing his authority for getting plots allotted fraudulently and encroaching upon state land for expansion of Dr Ziauddin Hospital/Trust, money laundering, illegal gains, kickbacks, commission through fertiliser cartel for illegal curtailment of gas for exploitative price hike and defrauding people in the name of charity hospital.
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