In a significant development, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has constituted a larger bench to hear various pleas filed with regard to PTI founder Imran Khan’s right to meet his family members and party leaders at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, where the former prime minister is incarcerated.
The bench to be led by IHC Acting Chief Justice Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar will comprise Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir and Justice Muhammad Azam Khan. The larger bench will hear more than 20 pleas.
The development came as the IHC acting chief heard a petition filed by Adiala jail Superintendent Abdul Ghafoor Anjum who complained about multiple pleas concerning Imran Khan’s visitation rights and conflicting judgements by the courts on the said issue.
“In the interest of judicial consistency, it is imperative that all related cases listed […] be consolidated before a single or larger bench to ensure uniform adjudication and effective enforcement of judicial directives,” read the jail official’s petition while citing operational difficulties and uncertainty faced by the prison administration. The former prime minister, facing a plethora of legal cases, has been detained at Adiala jail since September 2023.
However, his incarceration has not been without controversy as the former ruling party has time again complained of mistreatment by the authorities as well as alleged hindrances in arranging meetings between the PTI founder, his lawyers and others.
Last week, the IHC had ordered Adiala officials to present the former PM before the court in a personal capacity in relation to a plea filed by PTI’s Mashal Yousafzai against alleged denial of permission to meet the PTI founder.
