Karachi: In a new twist to the ongoing saga of litigations in Pakistan cricket, the Islamabad High Court has imposed fines on four petitioners for misguiding the court and concealing facts.
The four petitioners Nadeem Sudal, Aamir Nawab (a former PCB governing board member from the Abbottabad Cricket Association), Mohammad Rafiq and Ameer Haider had approached the IHC against the new constitution of the Pakistan cricket Board.
The IHC judge, Athar Minallah rejected the writ petition against the new constitution. He also fined the four petitioners Rs 1 million each for misguiding the court and concealing facts setting a new precedent in Pakistan cricket.
Since last year, a number of litigations have been filed in the IHC and other courts involving the PCB or Pakistan cricket issues leading to uncertainty and confusion in Pakistan cricket.
Justice Athar Minallah in his ruling observed, "The four petitioners' objection on the constitution was rejected as they tried to mislead the court by concealing facts."
The court noted that none of the four petitioners, who had questioned the newly implemented constitution, were aggrieved parties and all of them were given heavy monetary sanctions which will be paid to the PCB directly.
It was a petition filed by Nadeem last year in the IHC that had led to the court declaring the election of Zaka Ashraf as null and void and which led to the government appointing Najam Sethi as caretaker chairman of the board.
After Zaka appealed against the decision, it led to a leadership crisis in the Pakistan cricket Board as Ashraf and Sethi changed seats not once but thrice.
Nadeem is a former official of the Army Cricket Club in Rawalpindi and had earlier filed various petitions against the Board.
In July this year, the Supreme Court had ordered the PCB to implement the new constitution under which the board of governors would elect a new chairman. The decision brought an end to a period of turmoil that had extended for more than a year affecting the sport in the country.
