The Supreme Court has set aside the conviction of former federal minister Anwar Saifullah Khan and restored the Lahore High Court’s acquittal verdict after withdrawing its 2016 ruling.
In a written judgement issued by Justice Salahuddin Panhwar, the court accepted Anwar Saifullah Khan’s review petition and reinstated the Lahore High Court’s acquittal order dated June 13, 2002.
The Supreme Court ruled that no individual could be handed a harsher punishment under a law enacted after the alleged offence had taken place.
According to the judgement, the application of the National Accountability Bureau Ordinance of 1999 to allegations dating back to 1996 was constitutionally invalid. The court observed that Article 12 of the Constitution imposed a complete bar on retrospective punishment.
The ruling stated that the prosecution failed to produce evidence of bribery, personal gain or loss to the national exchequer, adding that administrative irregularities alone were insufficient to establish criminal intent.
The Supreme Court further observed that the presumption of innocence became stronger after an acquittal by the high court and such verdicts could only be disturbed in exceptional circumstances.
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