The Federal Constitutional Court of Pakistan (FCCP) has ruled that when a main appeal in a case is already pending hearing, an early decision on the main appeal is preferable to parallel proceedings on a request for suspension of sentence.
FCCP dismisses Bushra Bibi’s appeal against rejection of sentence suspension plea
ISLAMABAD, Oct 14 (APP): The Federal Constitutional Court of Pakistan (FCCP) has ruled that when a main appeal in a case is already pending hearing, an early decision on the main appeal is preferable to parallel proceedings on a request for suspension of sentence.
The court dismissed an appeal challenging the Islamabad High Court’s order rejecting Bushra Bibi’s plea for suspension of her sentence.
A two-member bench comprising Chief Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Ali Baqar Najafi issued a detailed written judgment on Wednesday, expressing the expectation that the Islamabad High Court would provide both parties a fair opportunity of hearing while deciding the main appeal and discourage unnecessary adjournments.
The court condoned a 61-day delay in filing the appeal, observing that Bushra Bibi’s explanation that she was incarcerated at Adiala Jail was sufficient.
According to the judgment, Bushra Bibi had challenged the Islamabad High Court’s April 30, 2026 order, which had rejected her application for suspension of the sentence awarded by an accountability court on January 17, 2025.
Her counsel, Barrister Salman Safdar, argued that the sentence suspension plea had remained pending because the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) repeatedly sought adjournments. He maintained that the main appeal involved an extensive record and complex legal questions requiring detailed arguments.
The FCC held that the need to examine an extensive record and hear detailed arguments in the main appeal did not, by itself, provide sufficient grounds to interfere with the order rejecting the sentence suspension plea.
The court observed that Bushra Bibi’s counsel should fully assist the high court during the hearing of the main appeal, while NAB should present its arguments without seeking unnecessary adjournments.
Dismissing the appeal with these observations, the FCC expressed the expectation that the Islamabad High Court would endeavour to decide the main appeal expeditiously.
