ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC), Tuesday, issued notices to the advocate general (AG) Islamabad in appeals of former prime minister Imran Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi against their convictions in the cypher and Toshakhana cases.
A special bench of Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, on Tuesday, heard the appeals and adjourned the case until Wednesday (Mar 20) seeking a response from the AG Islamabad in the instant matter.
During the hearing, Salman Safdar, Sikandar Zulqarnain, representing Khan and Qureshi, argued by scrutinizing the procedural aspects of the case and presented their arguments.
Safdar mentioned the alleged discrepancies in the filing process of the FIR and pointed out the irregularities in dates and the absence of crucial documentation linking the defendants to the case.
Drawing the attention of the bench to the role of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and the initiation of the inquiry, the counsel emphasized the necessity of adhering to legal protocols. He claimed that the inquiry allegedly commenced prior to the formal filing of the complaint, casting doubts on the integrity of the investigation process.
In reply to questions from the bench regarding the conduct of the trial, Safdar mentioned the importance of upholding the principles of fair trial as enshrined in Article 10-A. He raised concerns over the timing and conduct of the trial, suggesting potential infringements on the defendants’ rights.
Accepting the complexity of the case, the bench stressed the need to ensure a transparent and equitable legal process. The IHC chief justice emphasized the importance of cross-examination and expressed a commitment to uphold the defendants’ rights throughout the proceedings.
Safdar contended that the trial court judge wrote in paragraph two of his judgment that the trial was concluded due to the direction of the high court while the Supreme Court had annulled the direction of the high court to complete the trial within a month. He added that the trial was conducted in haste without any direction from the higher judiciary.
At this, Justice Aurangzeb remarked that if the judge conducted the trial in haste, they would ask about from the prosecution.
Justice Farooq said there is no restriction that a trial cannot be done on a daily basis, but a trial should be done logically on a daily basis as well.
Khan’s counsel argued that it would not be wrong to say that the cypher case trial was the most controversial trial in the history of Islamabad and that the trial court judge made this trial controversial.
He informed the bench that Khan’s lawyer Sikandar Zulqarnain could not appear in the jail hearing one day due to toothache and the next day the trial judge appointed government lawyers. The defense reiterated concerns over the timing of the trial and highlighted challenges faced during the proceedings.
Later, the bench issued notices to the AG Islamabad seeking his response regarding the government-appointed lawyers in this case and deferred the hearing of the case till Wednesday (today) for further proceedings.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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