Ephedrine case: LHC seeks arguments on Hanif Abbasi appeal

LAHORE: A Lahore High Court (LHC) division bench on Wednesday sought arguments from parties on an appeal filed by Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hanif Abbasi against his conviction in ephedrine case.

The bench headed by Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar heard the appeal filed by the PML-N leader against his conviction.

As proceedings commenced, a counsel on behalf of the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) requested the court to adjourn the matter as he had not received the case record yet.

At this, the bench allowed the request and sought arguments from the parties while adjourning the further hearing till January 31.

Abbasi through his appeal had requested the bench to set aside his conviction and order release as the trial court had failed to appreciate facts of the case. He also pleaded for suspension of the sentence and release on bail till final decision of the appeal.

In July 2018, an anti-narcotics court sentenced Abbasi to life in prison in the eight-year-old ephedrine quota case.

It is pertinent to mention that the matter was fixed at LHC Rawalpindi Bench earlier but the judges refused themselves from hearing the appeal. The LHC chief justice ordered to fix the matter at Principal seat while allowing an application for the purpose by Abbasi's counsel.