Islamabad High Court rejected the bail petition of former federal minister for religious affairs Hamid Saeed Kazmi in Hajj corruption case.
The high court upheld the decision of a lower court that sentenced the minister to 12 years in prison. Hence, Kazmi will be spending Eid in prison.
Kazmi was allegated of involvement in the Haj corruption scandal and inflicting huge losses to the national coffers two years ago, following which, a case was registered leading to his arrest on March 15, 2011.
Between 2010 and 2012, the Haj corruption scandal rocked the national political scene and led to the departure of both Hamid Saeed Kazmi and Azam Swati from the federal cabinet.
The former also spent nearly two years in prison over charges of irregularities in the 2009 Haj operation
Kazmi was accused of corruption during the course of renting residential buildings for Pakistani pilgrims in Saudi Arabia and inflicting a loss of billions of rupees to the national exchequer. A case was registered against him and he was arrested on March 15, 2011.
