The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday halted trial court proceedings against lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, Hadi Ali Chatha, in the case concerning a controversial social media post.
A three-judge SC bench headed by Justice Muhammad Hashim Khan Kakar, and comprising Justices Salahuddin Panwhar and Ishtiaq Ibrahim, heard the plea.
Granting a stay on Mazari’s petitions, the SC directed the trial court to suspend proceedings until the Islamabad High Court (IHC) decides both lawyers’ pleas in the case.
It should be noted that the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) registered a case against Mazari and Chatha, alleging that their social media posts attempted to incite linguistic divisions and create the impression that the armed forces were involved in terrorism within the country.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka later indicted both, though they denied all charges.
On December 1, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) refused to grant the couple ad-interim relief to stay the trial, prompting them to challenge the order before the Supreme Court through their counsel, Faisal Siddiqi.
In a plea filed on December 4, the petitioners argued that the criminal trial was nearing conclusion, requiring urgent intervention. They further contended that they had moved a criminal revision before the IHC due to due process violations under the CrPC, including the recording of evidence in their absence.
