ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has formed a special division bench to hear the appeals of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi, and Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Monday against their convictions in the cipher and Toshakhana cases.
The former premier and ex foreign minister have challenged their conviction in cipher case. Separately, Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi appealed against Toshakhana reference conviction in which, both were given 14 years sentence.
Chief Justice Amer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan will hear the cases.
The arrest and remand hearing on August 16, 2023, were conducted in the “most objectionable, clandestine, and secretive manner,” according to the appeal against conviction in the cipher case.
It claimed that the judge swiftly indicted the former prime minister and foreign minister because the prosecution had not shared the entire record that had been presented to the trial court against Mr. Khan.
Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain is accused of concluding the trial without following the required procedural standards, however the appeal remembered that the IHC division bench had to cancel the trial court proceedings twice due to the “glaring illegalities.”
The judge, however, failed to guarantee a fair trial; instead, “the trial was concluded in less than 20 days” and “the proceedings were hurried through by the court at a breakneck speed for reasons known only to the court itself.”
According to the appeal, the defence team cross-examined four prosecution witnesses. The case was then postponed till January 25 when one lawyer had to travel to Lahore for emergency dental work and another appeared before the IHC. When the judge assigned state attorneys for Mr. Khan and Mr. Qureshi, the matter was postponed until January 27.
