ISLAMABAD: The special court on Tuesday deferred the indictment of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former prime minister Imran Khan and PTI vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi till Wednesday (today) and also disposed of six petitions filed by the defence counsel.
The special court judge, Abul Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain, hearing the case at Adiala jail put off the indictment of both the accused till Wednesday and also disposed of six different petitions filed by the defence counsel including one about the absence of media during the open trial. Former prime minister Khan and Qureshi were produced before the court.
However, a six to seven feet high glass partition had been fixed in the courtroom which prevented direct communication of the accused with individuals attending the trial including media persons.
The family members of Khan, Qureshi, and some media personnel attended the hearing. The Federal Investigation Agency’s special prosecutors, Shah Khawar and Zulfikar Abbas Naqvi as well as PTI leader’s legal team including Barrister Salman Safdar and Barrister Taimur Malik appeared before the court.
At the start of the hearing, the defence counsel filed six different petitions regarding the absence of the media, incomplete copies of challan (charge-sheet copies), and notification. The jail authorities have allowed only a few journalists to cover the proceedings and a large number of media personnel are waiting outside the jail, Safdar told the court.
The judge said that this was an administrative matter and he would talk to jail authorities in this regard.
During the hearing, Khan objected to the locking of the courtroom from the outside and said that there was no terrorist in his family members.
After the objection of Khan, the court ordered authorities to open the lock at the exit gate of the courtroom. These are administrative issues and you do not know how I manage them, the judge said, adding that he granted relief out of the way.
Safdar argued that the court is moving forward in haste and it should not be done. The judge asked the defence counsel to tell him about any point, where they had shown haste or urgency.
The defence counsel further said that he has challenged two judgments of the special court in Islamabad High Court (IHC).
To this, the prosecutor said that the IHC has not stopped the trial court from trial, adding that the court should complete the process of indictment.
The judge remarked that whatever decision the court will take will be based on merit. People who are in jail should be released if not found guilty, the judge further said.
At one point, Qureshi told the judge that the court had given the decision of open court which is appreciable. If the administration becomes a court above the court, how will the trial go? Qureshi inquired.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023