IN THE SUPREME COURT OF PAKISTAN 
(APPELLATE JURISDICTION) 
 
 
 
PRESENT: 
MR. JUSTICE IJAZ UL AHSAN 
MR. JUSTICE SAYYED MAZAHAR ALI AKBAR NAQVI 
 
 
CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 927-L OF 2021 
(On appeal against the order dated 22.06.2021 passed 
by the Lahore High Court, Lahore in Criminal 
Miscellaneous No. 31992/B/2021) 
 
 
Ihtisham Ali Cheema 
… Petitioner 
VERSUS 
The State and another  
… Respondents 
 
For the Petitioner: 
Mr. Khurram Latif Khan Khosa, ASC a/w 
petitioner 
 
 
 
For the State: 
 
Mirza Muhammad Usman, DPG 
 
 
 
 
Mr. Muhammad Zahid, SI 
 
Date of Hearing: 
 
21.10.2021 
 
ORDER 
 
SAYYED MAZAHAR ALI AKBAR NAQVI, J.- Through the instant 
petition under Article 185(3) of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of 
Pakistan, 1973, the petitioner has assailed the order dated 
22.06.2021 passed by the learned Single Judge of the Lahore High 
Court, Lahore, with a prayer to grant pre-arrest bail in case 
registered vide FIR No. 228/2021 dated 22.02.2021 under Sections 
324/337-D/148/149 PPC at Police Station Sadar, Gujranwala, in 
the interest of safe administration of criminal justice. 
2. 
 
Briefly stated the allegation against the petitioner is 
that he along with co-accused while armed with firearms assaulted 
upon the complainant party and the petitioner fired with his pistol, 
which landed on the right side of the chest of one Abu Hurera, 
brother of the complainant.  
3. 
 
Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that the 
petitioner has been falsely roped in this case against the actual facts 
and circumstances of this case due to connivance of the complainant 
Criminal Petition No. 927-L/2021 
2
with local police. Contends that the petitioner is innocent and has 
nothing to do with the alleged offence as narrated in the FIR. 
Contends that the FIR was registered after a delay of 24 hours 
which shows that it was registered after deliberation and 
consultation. Contends that during the Police investigation, the 
petitioner was found empty handed at the place of occurrence and 
the role of firing at the chest of the injured was assigned to co-
accused Zain, who has been arrested and the pistol has been 
recovered from his possession. Finally contends that the case of the 
petitioner falls within the ambit of Section 497(2) Cr.P.C.   
4. 
 
On the other hand, learned Deputy Prosecutor General 
supported the impugned order declining bail to the petitioner. He 
contends that the petitioner has been specifically nominated in the 
crime report with a specific role of firing at the chest of brother of the 
complainant, therefore, he does not deserve any leniency by this 
Court.  
5. 
 
We have heard learned counsel for the parties at some 
length and have perused the record with their assistance.  
 
 
It is an admitted position that the petitioner has 
assailed the jurisdiction of this Court for the grant of pre-arrest bail, 
which is extraordinary in nature. The superior courts of this country 
have repeatedly held that the premium of pre-arrest bail is to be 
extended sparingly. However, if the facts and circumstances do 
warrant that the person seeking such relief is falsely implicated and 
there is likelihood of being injustice committed to him, this Court is 
under obligation to come for the rescue of innocent person while 
granting the said extraordinary relief. In the instant case, there is no 
denial to this fact that the case was registered after lapse of 24 
hours whereas the distance between the place of occurrence and the 
Police Station is hardly four miles on a metal road. The inordinate 
delay per se in this particular case is to be evaluated with care and 
caution. No doubt the petitioner is assigned the role of causing 
firearm injury on the right side of chest of the brother of the 
complainant but this aspect has been found false during the course 
of investigation, which remained unchallenged. During the course of 
investigation, it was further found that in-fact it was co-accused of 
the petitioner who fired at the injured and as such he was taken into 
Criminal Petition No. 927-L/2021 
3
custody and pistol has been recovered from him. During the course 
of investigation, it was further found that though the petitioner was 
present at the place of occurrence but he was empty handed and no 
overt act is ascribed to him. Apart from this it is an admitted fact 
that the petitioner was taken to hospital after the lapse of three 
hours and still fresh blood was oozing from the wound whereas the 
Glasgow Conscious Scale (GCS) was found to be 15/15. All these 
aspects when taken into consideration conjointly create doubt in the 
genuineness of the prosecution case. It is established principle of 
law that the benefit of doubt can even be extended at bail stage. It is 
an admitted fact that the parties are resident of the same area, 
known to each other and the occurrence has taken place in the 
broad day light. As a consequence of all facts and circumstances, 
we are of the view that putting the petitioner behind the bars at this 
stage perhaps would result into undue incarceration prior to 
establishing the guilt of the petitioner, which is to be avoided 
because of the reason that the liberty of a person is a precious right, 
which has been guaranteed under the Constitution of Islamic 
Republic of Pakistan, 1973.  
6. 
 
For what has been discussed above, we convert this 
petition into appeal, allow it, set aside the impugned order dated 
22.06.2021 and confirm the ad interim pre-arrest bail granted to the 
petitioner by this Court vide order dated 22.09.2021. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
JUDGE 
 
JUDGE 
Islamabad, the  
21st of October, 2021 
Approved For Reporting 
Khurram 
 
 
