Pakistan: Court withdraws contempt notices against Firdous Ashiq Awan, Ghulam Sarwar; accepts apologies

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday accepted the apologies of Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information Firdous Ashiq Awan and Minister for Aviation Ghulam Sarwar Khan, and withdrew its contempt of court notices against them.

During the hearing today, IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah appreciated the ministers for at least acknowledging that their remarks were political, even saying that "no one is perfect, including the judiciary", Dawn reported.

At one point, the judge even said that "the courts do not shy away from criticism but welcome it."

Justice Minallah, however, reminded the duo that weakening the trust of people in the judiciary just for political gain is harmful.

"The court was satisfied that whatever you [Awan and Sarwar] said falls under contempt of court but despite that the contempt of court show cause notice is being taken back," the IHC chief justice was quoted as saying.

Justice Minallah said that he hoped that the ministers would work on strengthening the people's trust in state institutions and avoid passing irresponsible remarks.

The chief justice said that he hoped that the ministers would not comment on ongoing cases in the future.

Commenting on the decision, Awan's lawyer Shah Khawar thanked the court for taking back the show-cause notice against his client.