The Punjab government has approved the cancellation of appointments of several special prosecutors assigned to the May 9 cases, following serious concerns over weak representation of the state’s position in court.
During a provincial cabinet meeting, performance reports of the special prosecutors were presented, revealing widespread absenteeism and inadequate case follow-ups. Officials expressed strong dissatisfaction over what they described as “poor advocacy” in highly sensitive cases.
According to the report, Special Prosecutor Rao Abdul Jabbar appeared only twice in 62 hearings, Asif Qureshi attended six out of 64 hearings, Rana Ashfaq Shafi appeared in four of 58 hearings, while Malik Ishrat Hussain attended just one hearing out of 67.
Similarly, Rana Manzoor Ahmed appeared only twice in 58 hearings, Rana Nauman Gohar attended 25 out of 64 hearings, and Shahid Shaukat appeared only twice in 99 hearings.
The list presented to the cabinet also highlighted a sensitive case from Sarwar Road, Lahore, in which the performance of Special Prosecutor Farhad Ali Shah was deemed unsatisfactory. The cabinet approved the recommendation to withdraw his appointment.
Acting on the assessment submitted by the Prosecutor General Punjab and the Prosecution Department, the cabinet formally approved the withdrawal of services of all special prosecutors identified for poor performance.
