KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has suspended the sentence of a man convicted in a diesel smuggling case and ordered his release on bail against Rs500,000 surety bonds.
A bench of the Sindh High Court heard the case involving convict Gul Zaman and raised questions about the prosecution’s evidence and the circumstances under which the seized diesel was classified as smuggled.
During the hearing, the Customs prosecutor informed the court that a customs court had convicted Gul Zaman in July after finding him guilty of diesel smuggling. The trial court had sentenced him to six years in prison and imposed a fine.
The high court, however, questioned the prosecution’s decision to make only the tanker driver an accused in the case. The judges observed that the prosecution had not established the involvement of any other person in the alleged smuggling operation.
The court also questioned how the authorities determined that the diesel was smuggled. The judges noted that the diesel had not been recovered from a border area and asked the prosecution to explain the evidence and legal basis for classifying it as smuggled.
After hearing arguments from the parties, the Sindh High Court suspended Gul Zaman’s sentence and ordered his release on bail upon submission of Rs500,000 in surety bonds.
The order provides temporary relief to the convict while questions remain regarding the evidence relied upon by the prosecution to establish that the seized diesel was smuggled.
