IHC to hear Imran, Bushra’s pleas for sentence suspensions in £190m graft case on March 11

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday fixed for hearing the petitions seeking suspension of former prime minister Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi’s sentences in the £190 million corruption case.

During the hearing today, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar and Justice Muhammad Azam Khan expressed displeasure as dozens of lawyers affiliated with PTI stood up and approached the rostrum simultaneously.

“What is this? Are you trying to influence the court?” the IHC chief justice asked.

Imran’s counsel, Barrister Salman Sardar, replied: “Not at all.”

He argued that the matter had assumed greater urgency in view of the former premier’s sudden ailment and eye infection. He further submitted that Bushra Bibi, despite being a woman, was serving a seven-year sentence and that her petition for suspension of sentence had been fixed after six months.

“We request you to suspend the sentence. The last order was passed on November 9,” he contended.

Justice Dogar observed that most of the miscellaneous civil applications seeking early hearing had turned infructuous, but ordered that the office objections on the suspension petitions be overruled.

Barrister Sardar then requested the court to fix the petitions for hearing next week.

However, the chief justice directed the registrar’s office to fix both the petitions seeking suspension and the main criminal appeals on March 11 and adjourned the proceedings.

In a related development, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro removed office objections on the petitions seeking suspension of their sentences in the Toshakhana case pertaining to an expensive Bulgari jewellery set.

The court directed the registrar’s office to number the petitions as well as the appeals against the convictions of Imran and Bushra Bibi and fix them for hearing in accordance with court policy.