PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Thursday approached the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking suspension of the trial court verdict in the Toshakhana case.
The move comes more than a month after the IHC had suspended Imran’s three-year sentence in the Toshakhana case.
On August 5, a trial court in Islamabad had found the PTI chief guilty of “corrupt practices” in a case pertaining to concealing details of state gifts and sentenced him to three years in prison.
While Additional District and Sessions Judge Humayun Dilawar had ordered the capital police chief to arrest Imran, he was instead arrested by the Punjab police, who took him to the Attock district jail. The Supreme Court had later acknowledged “procedural defects” in Imran’s conviction by the trial court.
After his sentence in the Toshakhana case was suspended by the IHC, the government had detained the PTI chief in the cipher case. He has since remained behind bars on judicial remand, which has been extended until October 10.
On September 26, Imran was shifted to Adiala jail from Attock jail following on the directives issued by the IHC. Last weekend, the police had ramped up security in the vicinity of the Adiala jail by deploying elite commandos and setting up additional security pickets to ensure foolproof measures.
Today, Imran, through senior lawyer Sardar Latif Khosa, moved the IHC against the Toshakhana verdict under section 561-A (saving of inherent power of high court) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
The petition’s title stated that it sought “rectification of the order dated August 28 to the extent of suspending the operation of the impugned order along with the sentence as verbally prayed by the learned counsel for the petitioner before this honourable court at the time of arguments”.
It urged the court to rectify the “omission of not recording the contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner with regard to the suspension” of the Toshakhana judgment of August 5.
It further requested the IHC that the operation of the same order be “suspended/stayed till final decision of the appeal”. The plea also sought permission to make the state a respondent in the memo of appeal.
“Any other direction or relief which this honourable court deems fit and proper in the indication of grievances aforesaid may also be awarded, it added.
The petition listed the Election Commission of Pakistan as a respondent in the case and stated that during the course of the arguments, Imran’s counsel, Khosa, had “specifically requested” the IHC to suspend the operation of the Toshakhana verdict as well as the sentence.
It argued that the language of section 426 (suspension of sentence pending appeals) of CrPC was “very much clear that the court seized with the matter has the power to suspend the impugned order and the sentence”.
Citing section 561-A of the CrPC, it said the IHC had the authority to issue orders to “give effect to any order under the Code (CrPC) or to prevent abuse of process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice”.
The plea added that the omission of not the counsel’s contentions before the IHC when urging the suspension of the August 5 trial court verdict and the “subsequent non-mentioning of the same” in the IHC’s order of August 28 was “an omission floating on the face of the order”.
It contended that the omission of arguments has “caused serious prejudice to the rights” of the PTI chief as he has been disqualified from contesting elections by the ECP.
The petition further said the mala fide of the ECP was “conspicuously ascertainable from the very complaint and consequential illegal trial, all of which proceedings are corrum non-judice and non-est”. It added that the ECP was “in haste in disqualifying the petition […] notwithstanding the fact that conviction/sentence had not attained finality”.
The plea went on to mention “attempts being made to remove his (sic) from head of party and even proceedings to take away the symbol and throw him out of the arena of general elections”.
“The entire leadership of PTI is either incarcerated or amongst the missing persons beside hundreds of false cases registered against loyalist resulting in incarceration and unending ordeal,” it stated.
IHC hears plea seeking Imran’s protection
Meanwhile, the IHC issued notices to respondents on a plea of Imran’s wife, Bushra Bibi, wherein she sought protection for her husband.
On Monday, Bushra Bibi had approached the IHC seeking protection for her husband. She had expressed the apprehension that the jail administration might poison the meal of her husband and sought permission for homemade food for the detained PTI chief.
The next day, Naeem Haider Panjutha, spokesman to Imran on legal affairs, had claimed that his client had been moved to a lower-class cell at the Adiala Jail last night and feared the ex-premier’s life was in danger.
Confirming that Bushra Bibi met Imran in Adiala Jail on Tuesday, he claimed there was “danger to Imran Khan’s life”. “Imran can be slow food poisoned … he is being mentally tortured and his movement has been restricted.”
Panjutha had alleged that he had received reports on Monday night that the PTI chief was moved to a lower-class cell. “Security personnel has been stationed outside the cell and mobile phones have been taken for them,” he had said, claiming that these were new ways of “breaking” Imran.
The special court (Official Secrets Act) seized with the cipher case against Imran and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi is likely to indict both leaders on Oct 9, it emerged during their trial behind bars a day ago.
Today, IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq presided over the hearing and issued notices to the respondents in the case.
During the hearing, he observed, “If there is room for it and the court can do something, I will issue an order accordingly.”
Senior lawyer Latif Khosa appeared as the counsel for Bushra Bibi and urged the court to grant permission to provide Imran with homecooked food.
“Prayers can barely be offered in the cell where the PTI chairman has been kept,” he contended before the court.
“It is our history that whoever becomes the president or prime minister, he later becomes a guest at the Adiala and Attock jails,” Khosa said.
Subsequently, the court issued notices and adjourned the hearing until next week.
