Lahore session court issued a bailable arrest warrant of Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Political Communication Dr. Shahbaz Gill on Wednesday pertaining to a defamation suit. Gill has submitted a plea before court, requesting the court to withdraw the arrest warrant on Thursday.
It is pertinent to note that during a TV show, aired in September 2020, Gill had accused a Turkish company M/s Platform Turizm Tasimacilik, a subsidiary of Al-Bayrak Group of companies, of signing the metro bus project with the then PML-N government for a heavy amount.
Pertaining to the accusation, the company filed a defamation suit against Gill, soon after he gave the statement. The company sought to take action against him under sections 499 and 500 of the Pakistan Penal Code for levelling false allegations against the firm. The company stated that because of the false allegations by Gill, the company had to face a huge financial loss.
In his defence, Gill registered a case against the company, alleging that the documents submitted in the court, pertaining to the case were forged and fabricated.
During the hearing on Wednesday, Gill’s counsel failed to be present before the court. Therefore the court decided to issue bailable arrest warrants for the SAPM.
As per the court’s order, bailable arrest warrants against a surety bond of Rs.30,000 were issued, and the court summoned Gill to appear in person in the next hearing on November 1.
As per the sources, Gill has filed the petition, urging the court to withdraw the arrest warrants. He went on to add that he had earlier been given an exemption by the court on May 27, 2021 from appearing in person in the court.
