Asghar Khan’s family requests SC not to wind up election rigging petition

Islamabad: Late air chief marshal Asghar Khan’s family on Thursday requested the Supreme Court not to wind up a petition seeking a probe into the alleged distribution of a huge sum among several politicians to defeat Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Benazir Bhutto in the 1990 general elections. On January 7, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) submitted a report in the SC to close the inquiry into the case as it could not find sufficient evidence to proceed with its probe against then president Ghulam Ishaq Khan, then army chief Mirza Aslam Beg and politicians, including former premier Nawaz Sharif. Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, while hearing the petition with regard to non-implementation of the October 19, 2012 verdict in the Asghar Khan case, had issued a notice to Asghar Khan’s family to submit a reply in the wake of FIA’s report. The late air chief’s legal heirs in a reply submitted in the apex court today pleaded that the case should be taken to its logical conclusion. “The Asghar Khan case should not be closed without taking it to its logical conclusion.” They requested that FIA be asked to carry on with its probe into the case. “We want a logical conclusion of the case as people should be informed about its outcome.” Earlier, son of former air chief marshal Ali Asghar Khan said he will not allow closure of the Asghar Khan case over lack of evidence. In 1996, Asghar Khan had written a letter to the then chief justice of Pakistan Nasim Hassan Shah, alleging that the then president Ghulam Ishaq Khan, then army chief Mirza Aslam Beg, and others had distributed Rs 140 million among several politicians to rig the 1990 polls against Benazir Bhutto. The former air marshal passed away on January 5, 2018 after a protracted illness at the age of 97.