LAHORE: Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday dismissed a contempt of court petition against the prime minister on grounds of immunity under Article 248 of the Constitution.
A citizen named Syed Iqtidar Haider filed an application with the LHC contending that Pakistan gained independence on Ramazan 27, adding that that should be celebrated as the official Independence Day instead of August 14.
In this regard, the court had directed the premier on Dec 5, 2012 to meet the citizen to assuage his complain.
However, the petitioner said he could not meet the premier despite making several visits to the Prime Minister House.
Later in Feb 2014, the petitioner again submitted a plea to the LHC following which the court once again ruled that the premier should meet the citizen and that addressing such a complaint was part of his domain.
Despite two court orders and several visits, the applicant could not hold a meeting with the premier on the matter.
Haider then submitted another application with the LHC stating that the prime minister had disregarded the court’s orders and contempt of court proceedings should be initiated against him.
During today’s hearing of the petition, the court rejected the plea stating that the prime minister enjoyed constitutional immunity under Article 248.
The ruling comes despite the fact that in recent years, the country has seen a prime minister being disqualified on contempt of court charges.
The Supreme Court had declared Yousuf Raza Gilani guilty for committing contempt of court on April 26, 2012.