Tallal challenges SC, calls verdict unfair

– ‘No charges pertaining to contempt of court were proven against me’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Tallal Chaudhry on Thursday challenged the Supreme Court’s verdict that had rendered him disqualified to contest elections for five years.

The former minister of state for interior, in his appeal, has claimed that he was punished unjustly, as no charges pertaining to contempt of court were proven against him. He added that the evidence in the case was not reviewed properly.

Chaudhry, one of the most outspoken PML-N leaders, alleged that the prosecution’s perspective was given due weightage whereas the defence’s perspective was completely ignored.

He further claimed that he was not given the benefit of the doubt despite the presence of evidence against the prosecution. Chaudhry stressed that there were enough irregularities and illegalities in the case.

The Supreme Court took notice of Tallal Chaudhry when he made a speech at a PML-N rally in Jarranwala where he had said, “There was an era when the Kaabah was full of idols. Today, the judiciary, which is the country’s highest institution, is also full of Provisional Constitution Order (PCO) idols.”

A three-judge bench, headed by Justice Gulzar Ahmed, had handed him a Rs 0.1 million fine and banned him for contesting elections as well as holding any public office for next five years.