Former PTI chairman Imran Khan has challenged before the Lahore High Court the proceedings of the contempt of election commission case and its jail trial.
Imran Khan’s petition was submitted by his lawyers Salman Akram Raja and Barrister Samir Khosa. The petition has made the federal government, the Election Commission of Pakistan and the Adiala Jail superintendent parties.
Imran Khan argues in the petition that the ECP started proceedings for contempt of the commission illegally. The ECP did not have the authority to try someone for contempt, it pleads.
The petition further states that the election commission has decided to conduct a jail trial in the case, which is also illegal. A hidden trial inside the trial is a violation of Article 4 of the Constitution.
The ECP has fixed the date of December 13th for the indictment process in jail, it says. Therefore, the Lahore High Court should declare the decision to conduct a jail trial null and void.
The court should also order an open, free, and fair trial and also stop the indictment process through a secret trial until the final decision on the application.
On Wednesday, the ECP had decided that the proceedings in the contempt of the commission case against former PTI chief Imran Khan and ex-party leader Fawad Chaudhry would be conducted on Dec 13 at Adiala Jail, where both are currently imprisoned.
The ECP announced the verdict over the Interior Ministry’s refusal to produce Imran Khan before the commission during the last hearing, citing security concerns.
