Abdul Rasheed V. The State through Deputy Prosecutor-General NAB, Balochistan,
MLD 2015 1572 · Balochistan High Court
This case involved Abdul Rasheed, a government officer (Assistant Director, Food Department) in Kalat, who was accused of corruption under the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999. When the trial court's warrants of arrest could not be served on him at his office or residential addresses, the court declared him an absconder after publishing notices in newspapers. It then proceeded under section 88 of the Criminal Procedure Code and, on the very next hearing, convicted him in his absence under section 31-A of the NAB Ordinance, sentencing him to three years' rigorous imprisonment.
The Balochistan High Court found this conviction illegal. It held that only one failed attempt to serve the warrant was not enough - the prosecution should have repeated the attempt or checked with his department whether he was actually on duty or absent. The accused's claim that he was never absent from work was never disputed by any evidence. The court also found that the mandatory legal steps for declaring someone an absconder - publicly reading and affixing the proclamation at his residence, town, and the courthouse - were never properly completed.
Because these procedural safeguards were ignored, the court ruled the trial court's orders declaring him an absconder and convicting him were invalid. The appeal was allowed, the orders were set aside, and the accused was directed to appear regularly before the trial court to continue facing his case. This case highlights the importance of following proper legal procedure before convicting someone in absentia.
یہ مقدمہ عبدالرشید سے متعلق ہے، جو کلات میں محکمہ خوراک کے اسسٹنٹ ڈائریکٹر کے عہدے پر تعینات ایک سرکاری افسر تھے اور جن کے خلاف نیشنل اکاؤنٹیبلٹی آرڈیننس 1999 کے تحت بدعنوانی کا الزام عائد کیا گیا تھا۔ جب ٹرائل کورٹ کے جاری کردہ گرفتاری کے وارنٹ ان کے دفتری اور رہائشی پتوں پر تعمیل نہ ہو سکے، تو عدالت نے اخبارات میں نوٹس شائع کروانے کے بعد انہیں مفرور قرار دے دیا۔ اس کے بعد عدالت نے ضابطہ فوجداری کی دفعہ 88 کے تحت کارروائی کی اور اگلی ہی سماعت پر نیب آرڈیننس کی دفعہ 31-اے کے تحت ان کی غیر موجودگی میں انہیں مجرم قرار دے کر تین سال قید بامشقت کی سزا سنا دی۔
بلوچستان ہائی کورٹ نے اس سزا کو غیر قانونی قرار دیا۔ عدالت نے کہا کہ وارنٹ کی تعمیل کی صرف ایک ناکام کوشش کافی نہیں تھی، بلکہ استغاثہ کو چاہیے تھا کہ وہ دوبارہ کوشش کرتا یا ملزم کے محکمے سے یہ معلوم کرتا