A special court in Lahore has delayed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz’s indictment in the Rs16 billion money laundering case after the premier submitted an application seeking exemption from the appearance.

PM Shehbaz and son Hamza were directed to appear before the court in the last hearing of the case. When the hearing resumed on Saturday, Hamza appeared before the court, while the prime minister’s lawyer submitted the application.

PM Shehbaz, who was visiting Britain for “personal reasons” was due to return by May 13 and attend the hearing. He was ostenisbly delayed as his appointment with the physician could not be scheduled before Saturday 12:30pm, read the application.

It stated that PM Shehbaz is a cancer survivor and chronic patient of backache but he was not allowed to go abroad for medical checkup by the previous government’s “vindictive tactics and political vengeance”.

“The non-appearance of the petitioner is neither malafide nor intentional, rather, the same is on the account of the above said reason,” it added.

Subsequently, Judge Ijaz Hassan Awan accepted the application and extended Shehbaz and Hamza’s pre-arrest bails till May 21.

Earlier, the Federal Investigation Agency decided not to prosecute PM Shehbaz and CM Hamza in the case. The decision came three days before a special Lahore court was set to indict them.

The FIA had submitted an application in the court, stating that its director general, through the investigating officer, instructed Special Prosecutor Sikandar Saleem not to appear in court as the accused in the case were going to be elected the prime minister and chief minister of Punjab.

On Thursday, Judge Awan issued a written order on the application of the Federal Investigation Agency’s prosecution team.

In December 2021, the FIA submitted a challan in a banking court against the then opposition leader in the National Assembly Shehbaz and his sons Hamza and Suleman citing them as the main suspects in a Rs16 billion money laundering case.