Former PTI MPA Junaid Afzal Sahi has received major relief from the Lahore High Court in a case related to the May 9, as the court suspended the three-year prison sentence awarded to him by the Anti-Terrorism Court until a final decision on his appeal.
A two-member bench headed by Justice Syed Shahbaz Ali Rizvi approved Junaid Afzal Sahi’s plea for suspension of sentence after hearing arguments from both sides. According to the case details, a case had been registered against Junaid Afzal Sahi at Civil Lines Police Station Faisalabad in connection with the May 9 incidents. Later, the Anti-Terrorism Court Faisalabad sentenced him to three years imprisonment after completing the trial, against which he had filed an appeal in the Lahore High Court.
During the hearing, counsel for the accused, Chaudhry Uzair Ashraf Advocate, argued that no recovery had been made from his client and no allegation of injuring any person had been proven. He further told the court that there was also no concrete evidence on record regarding sloganeering against sensitive institutions.
Defence counsel Chaudhry Uzair Ashraf Advocate further submitted that Junaid Afzal Sahi had been sentenced to three years imprisonment and had already spent the last seven months in jail; therefore, the sentence should be suspended.
On the other hand, the state counsel and special prosecutor opposed the plea for suspension of sentence; however, they failed to satisfy the court regarding maintaining the conviction. After hearing arguments from both sides, the court suspended the sentence of former MPA Junaid Afzal Sahi and adjourned further hearing on the appeal until a later date.
Reporter Malik Ashraf