KARACHI: Dr Asim Hussain will be free to fly abroad for his treatment provided that the Sindh High Court (SHC) grants his plea for having his passports back and his name removed from the Exit Control List as the trial court has green-lighted his foreign trip on Saturday.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Karachi chapter president and close aide of former president Asif Ali Zardari is facing a criminal case and two corruption references.
Dr Asim, who is out on bail, approached the anti-terrorism court-II for permission to travel abroad.
The ATC-II Judge allowed him to travel abroad for two weeks subject to furnishing a surety of Rs 2 million. The period of two weeks will start from the day he leaves Pakistan, the court added.
The judge ruled, “In case he does not come back, the government would move in to take over his Ziauddin Hospitals.”
His lawyer said that a medical board was set up to examine the health of Dr Asim had advised him to go abroad for treatment. He needed a lumbar disc replacement surgery which is not possible in Pakistan, the counsel said, while quoting the nine-member medical board.
The prosecution had no objection to Dr Asim’s plea, however, Sajid Mehbob, the Rangers’s counsel, expressed reservation that he may not come back. Dr Asim assured the judge that he wanted to go abroad for only two weeks to get treatment.
When asked as to what surety he was going to furnish, he said he would hand over his hospitals to the government if he did not return. The ATC granted his plea in the case related to the alleged sheltering and treatment of suspected terrorists at his hospitals.
Earlier on Nov 1, last year, the high court had approved bail for Dr Asim, against a surety of Rs 500,000 in the present case.
Dr Asim was accused of treating and providing shelter to suspected terrorists, belonging to Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), and Lyari gangsters at his private hospitals.
It was alleged that he did all this at the request from certain politicians, including Karachi mayor Waseem Akhtar, MQM leader Rauf Siddiqui and Abdul Qadir Patel of PPP, and Anis Qaimkhani of Pak Sarzameen Party.
Earlier this week, the high court issued notices to the federal and provincial authorities to file comments on the petition of Dr Asim seeking permission to travel abroad.
The PPP leader was released on April 1 after about 19 months when the SHC granted him bail in two corruption references.
Meanwhile, an accountability court put off a Rs 462 million corruption case against Dr Asim till April 29. The case was adjourned due to the absence of judge.
The NAB reference alleged that Dr Asim misused his authority to get allotted land illegally, encroached upon the state land for expansion of Dr Ziauddin Hospital. He was also involved in money laundering and receiving kickbacks.
