The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday asked the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) to share with it more proofs in support of its contempt of court allegation against Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, reported 24NewsHD TV channel. 

A two-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Ijazul Ahsan, heard the PTI’s petition against Rana Sana.

Justice Ijaz, on the occasion, while referring to the interior minister’s statement in which he had said that five members of the Punjab Assembly (MPAs) could disappear prior to the election for the Punjab chief minister on July 22, 2022, remarked that if these MPAs were whisked away by the state, it would be a ‘criminal offence’, and only then this could be declared ‘contempt of court’, and not before. “Please tell us as to how we could call it ‘contempt of court’,” he said, adding the court could not order any action merely on the basis of assumptions. “How can we accept that Rana Sana had made threatening calls to the PTI MPAs and also offered them money?” Justice Ijaz asked, and in the same breath made it clear that the SC had an eye on any breach of the law.   

To a question by Justice Muneeb Akhtar, Faisal Chaudhry Advocate, representing the PTI in the case, replied that the original copies of the ‘affidavits’ submitted by the party’s MPAs in which they had accused the minister of hurling threats at them and also offering them money were in Lahore. 

Justice Muneeb pointed out that on none of these affidavits was there a mention of the date on which these calls were received. 

And when Justice Ijaz inquired from the PTI’s counsel as to why his party had not filed contempt of court petition against Punjab Home Minister Ataullah Tarar, he prayed to the court to take suo moto notice of Tarar’s statements. 

But the judge told him it was only the chief justice of Pakistan’s (CJP) prerogative. 

Later, the court adjourned hearing of the case for an indefinite time period. 

 Reporter: Amanat Gishkori