Written verdict issued on Imran Khan's petition against jail trial

Islamabad: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Thursday issued a written decision on the petition against the jail trial of Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan.

According to details, the written judgment said that earlier on June 27, 2023, the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) was fixed for the trial, a Magistrate or higher court can be appointed under the Official Secrets Act, and the District and Sessions Judge could also be assigned the responsibility to hear the cases.

The court declared in the judgment that assigning the responsibilities to the judge of ATC is not contrary to Section 13. The reasons for the jail trial of former Prime Minister Imran Khan are genuine, he is facing security concerns. The decision to conduct the jail trial of Chairman PTI is apparently not based on malice.

The order said that the petitioner's legal points do not have the force to invalidate the jail trial notifications, the petitioner informed this court about the security issues faced by him.

In the court decision, it was stated that the petition against the jail trial of PTI chief is disposed of on the basis of lack of merit. However, if there are concerns regarding the jail trial, the trial court can be approached.

The decision added that if the federal capital Islamabad had its own prison, many things would not have been mentioned in the application. The Ministry of Interior should start the prison project of the federal capital Islamabad as soon as possible.