Imran Khan, the leader of Pakistan’s Thereek-i-Insaf (PTI) and a former prime minister, is accused of contempt of court for ‘intimidating a female judge,’ and a five-judge bigger bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has been established to hear his case.
Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, and Justice Babar Sattar make up the bench under IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah.
On August 31, when the former prime minister is scheduled to personally appear before the court, the bench will resume deliberations on the issue. Mr. Khan had previously received a show-cause notice from the IHC directing him to appear before the court.
Initially, a three-member bench heard the case.In the show-cause letter to Mr. Khan, it was noted that the statement was made in a case that was still pending in order to obtain a “favourable” decision. At first glance, this action amounted to obstructing the administration of justice and due process, as well as undermining public confidence in the legal system.
“These comments have been made with the intent to undermine the judicial system’s integrity and credibility and to bring the administration of justice into disrepute.”
According to the initial evidence, Mr. Khan had engaged in “judicial and criminal contempt, punishable under section 5 of the Contempt of Court Ordinance, 2003,” it said.
Additionally, Yaseen Gill, the brother of Shahbaz Gill, Mr. Khan’s chief of staff, has complained about Zeba Chaudhry, an extra sessions judge, to the chief justice of the IHC.
Gill goes up to SC
At the meantime, Mr. Shahbaz, who is currently detained in Adiala Prison, filed a petition with the Supreme Court to challenge the IHC’s approval of the police’s 48-hour physical custody of him on August 22 despite clear evidence of abuse while in custody.
The petitioner filed two separate petitions with the SC asking the court to order the creation of an independent medical board to determine the extent of the physical abuse, the extent of his injuries, and the inhumane treatment he received while being held in physical custody.
