Imran Khan’s plea against Toshakhana verdict adjourned till Aug 24

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday adjourned the appeal filed by former premier Imran Khan — currently incarcerated in Attock Jail — against his conviction and sentence in the Toshakhana case till Thursday.

Today, the IHC also took up the plea seeking "better class/A-Class" jail facilities for Imran while also urging that his detention in Attock Jail be declared "illegal" and for the ex-premier to be shifted to Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.

On August 5, a trial court in Islamabad found the PTI chief guilty of "corrupt practices" in a case pertaining to concealing details of state gifts and sentenced him to three years in prison. The verdict also means that he stood disqualified from contesting general elections for five years.

A day ago, a report by Additional District and Sessions Judge Shafqut Ullah Khan stated that the "grave concern" regarding a lack of privacy around Imran's prison cell's toilet facilities due to a CCTV camera's presence was "genuine" and point towards a violation of prison rules.

Today, IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri presided over the hearing.

Khawaja Haris, Barrister Gohar, Babar Awan, Latif Khosa and Sher Afzal Marwat were among Imran's counsels who appeared in the court while Advocate Amjad Pervaiz appeared as the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP's) lawyer.

During the hearing, ECP lawyer Pervaiz requested more time for preparation and that the hearing be adjourned till Monday (August 28).

However, Khosa opposed the request, following which the IHC adjourned the hearing till Thursday (August 24).

The courtroom was reported to be full of people, leading to difficulties for the lawyers and media present there.

Prior to the hearing, Advocate Naeem Haider Panjutha, a member of Imran's legal team, said, "[Imran] Khan sahib would not be presented in the court as far as today is concerned."

He further said that other cases in an Islamabad anti-terrorism court were adjourned.

Last night, the Islamabad police had also stated that there was "no truth" in various reports that said Imran will appear in court today.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will tomorrow (Wednesday) hear Imran's plea challenging the August 3 IHC order of remanding the Toshakhana case to Additional Sessions Judge Humayun Dilawar, who had later declared the former premier to be guilty of "corrupt practices".

Copyright: Dawn/Asia News Network