ISLAMABAD: A two-member Islamabad High Court (IHC) division bench will announce its decision on the intra-court appeal filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan soon after 5pm today (Tuesday).
The court reserved its ruling earlier in the day after a brief hearing for the day. A day earlier, the court had sought the appointment record of the judge conducting the trial of former prime minister Imran Khan under the Official Secrets Act.
The two-member bench comprising Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz issued the directives while hearing Khan’s intra-court appeal against the IHC’s decision dismissing his plea for an open trial in the cipher case.
During the Monday’s hearing, Khan’s counsel, Salman Akram Raja claimed that the judge virtually conducted the in-camera trial in the case. Imran Khan’s counsel Raja argued before the court that security concerns should be based on material available on record. The court was of the view that the administrative order allowing jail trial could come under judicial scrutiny.
When the bench asked what prompted the judge to go for a jail trial, attorney general Mansoor Awan replied that the presiding judge took note of the security threat.
Advocate Raja argued the request to declare the jail premises a court has to be routed through the chief commissioner concerned.
Advocate Raja further argued that the federal cabinet approved the jail trial on November 15 and applied it with retrospective effect. He also objected to the appointment of Zulqarnain as special court judge. He had requested the court to declare the trial court proceedings illegal and also sought an order for an open court trial.
