IHC permits PTI leaders to hold election meeting with Imran Khan in jail

The Islamabad High Court has granted permission to PTI leaders and lawyers to visit former Prime Minister Imran Khan at Adiala Jail. Justice Miangul Hasan Aurangzeb passed the order in response to Imran’s petition seeking permission for election-related meetings and requesting privacy during consultations with party members.

As election-related activities unfold, with the poll schedule set for February 8, the deadline for filing nomination papers has passed. Returning officers will now examine papers from December 25 to December 30.

PTI Chairman Gohar Khan has stated that Imran will decide on ticket allotment, giving priority to PTI workers in jail, according to Barrister Ali Zafar. The Attorney-General for Pakistan, Mansoor Usman Awan, PTI lawyers, and the Adiala Jail superintendent appeared in the Islamabad High Court.

PTI counsel Shoaib Shaheen emphasized the need for discussions on the allotment of 700 tickets, leading to objections from the Attorney-General about the plea’s maintainability, which displeased Justice Aurangzeb.

The court granted PTI lawyers permission to hold consultations with Imran in jail, ordering a meeting between Gohar and Imran under the supervision of the jail superintendent. Justice Aurangzeb underscored the fundamental right to consultations on polls and emphasized the importance of caretaker neutrality.

He raised concerns about the interim government’s reluctance to allow consultations, questioning whether they aim to derail the polls. PTI lawyer Shaheen criticized the caretaker government’s stance, alleging they operate on orders and questioning the credibility of the puppet caretaker government. Additionally, he condemned police maltreatment of PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi outside Adiala Jail.

“They all have a problem with the fact that Imran Khan and the nation are on one page. Today, the public is standing with Imran Khan,” he asserted, adding that the ECP and elite political parties were seeing their defeat.

“What is the capacity or credibility left of this puppet caretaker government?” the lawyer asked. He also criticised the police maltreatment of PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi outside Adiala Jail earlier this week.

“We have made a mockery of ourselves in the entire world,” Shaheen added.

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