By Special Correspondent
ISLAMABAD: A member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) legal team Tuesday sought an exemption of PTI head Imran Khan from an in-person appearance before an Islamabad sessions court in the Tosha Khana reference wherein his indictment is expected today.
The Tosha Khana case is just one of the four cases the PTI head is required to appear in-person today. The other three cases include an attempted murder case running in the same court that is hearing the Tosha Khana case, the prohibited funding case in a local banking court and a terrorism case in an anti-terrorism court here.
Islamabad Session court
Additional Session Judge Zafar Iqbal presided over the hearing in the Tosha Khana case today. At the outset of the hearing, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawyer Ali Bukhari told the court that his client had left for Islamabad for appearance in two separate courts in the judicial complex here. “He wouldn’t be able to appear in this court today,” the lawyer apprised the court.
He requested the court to adjourn the proceedings in the case for five days. However, the counsel for the Election Commission of Pakistan opposed the request, saying the PTI head didn’t want to show up in the court. “It is not the concern of the court how far the party chief is travelling from to reach the court,” he added. He held that Imran Khan could also appear before this court if he was already coming to the judicial complex.
The PTI lawyer said his client could come to the court when he gets free from the other two cases, if within the court time. “He should also come here as indictment is pending. Once indicted, he can appear in the other courts,” the judge remarked. The lawyer said: “ Advocate Khawaja Haris would be representing Imran Khan in this particular case and he cannot come here today.” The judge then called a break in the proceedings. Earlier, the former prime minister left for Islamabad from Lahore with the party leaders to appear in the Islamabad courts, the party said on its official Twitter account.
It is to mention here that the banking and the anti-terrorism courts are in the judicial complex in sector G-11 of the federal capital while the sessions court is housed in the premises of F-8 Kacheri in the capital.
