SC indicts cleric on contempt charges for insulting judiciary

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday indicted cleric Mirza Iftikharuddin on contempt charges for using derogatory video against the judiciary and senior judges in a viral video.

A two-member bench of the apex court, comprising Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Ijazul Ahsan heard the case, giving him a week to respond to the charges.

The court framed charges against the accused and handed over a copy of the charge sheet to his counsel and directed to submit a reply at the next if the accused confesses to the charges.

Mirza Iftikhar tendered an unconditional apology to the Supreme Court for using derogatory and contemptuous language against the judiciary. He expressed regrets for his words and said he was ashamed of his remarks.

Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed remarked that he cannot mock the judiciary or the entire system will fail. “You were using such language from the Minbar of a mosque. Even an illiterate person wouldn’t use such language,” he said.

Last month, Justice Gulzar Ahmed took notice of a video clip containing derogatory and scandalous language against Justice Qazi Faez Isa. The video contained derogatory, contemptuous and scandalous language against the institution of the judiciary and the honourable judges, said a statement.

During a hearing on 2nd July, Mirza’s lawyer told the court that his client has apologised unconditionally for using derogatory language. Justice Ahsan had further a case of terrorism and criminal charges can be included against Mirza and an apology would be unnecessary.

The wife of Justice Qazi Faiz Isa had filed a petition at the Islamabad Police Station Secretariat regarding the video in which she said that a man in the video had threatened to kill her husband.