On Thursday, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) expressed pleasure with the former prime minister Imran Khan’s apologies and decided not to indict the leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in the matter involving contempt of court.
The ousted premier informed the court that he was ready to apologize to Zeba Chaudhry, Additional District, and Sessions Judge, for his comments.
The former prime minister was accused of threatening the court at a rally last month for placing Shahbaz Gill, the leader of the PTI, on remand.
The case was heard by a larger bench of five judges, led by IHC Chief Justice (CJ) Athar Minallah. Justices Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri, Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Mian Gul Hasan Aurangzeb, and Babar Sattar were also on the bench.
The matter was adjourned to 03-10-2022 for the framing of charges against the respondent. The proceedings will be taken up at 02:30 pm on the date fixed. Let’s put the matter on hold until 03/10/2022 so that the respondent can be charged. The proceedings will begin on the scheduled day at 2:30 PM.
The charges were originally scheduled to be read in court today. Imran’s attorney Hamid Khan, however, reiterated his plea from the previous session, and the PTI leader was permitted to speak in court.
Imran emphasized that he had devoted the last 26 years to the cause and said that he was the only one who spoke of the rule of law at political rallies.
He added that he was “sorry” for “crossing a red line” and “assured the court that I will not do something like this in the future.”In response, the court declared that the purpose had not been to charge the PTI chairman with contempt of court. The procedures against contempt of court were started because the case was still being heard, CJ Minallah continued.
The CJ added, “We welcome it [the apology],” adding, “What transpired shouldn’t have happened.” The judge said, “For us, [the main worry] is the lower courts,” and ordered Imran to provide an affidavit on the subject within a week.
