Imran has bitter argument with cipher court judge

RAWALPINDI: Former prime minister Imran Khan on Saturday had a bitter argument with the judge of Special Court established under the Official Secrets Act.

Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain appointed state defence counsel for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in cipher case.

Khan and Qureshi objected to being represented by state lawyers in the cipher case after their counsels failed to appear in court, Geo News reported.

Malik Abdul Rehman and Hazrat Younus appeared before the court representing Khan and Qureshi, respectively to cross-examine the witnesses.

The development comes after the former prime minister and former foreign minister’s lawyers failed to appear in the special court during the hearing of a petition filed by the prosecution seeking to terminate the right to cross-examination for the witnesses.

At the outset of the hearing, the court inquired about the absence of senior lawyers for the accused. Assistant lawyer Qamar Anayat Raja filed an application to postpone the hearing saying that senior counsel Sikander Zulqarnain was undergoing dental surgery and could not attend.

Special Prosecutor Zulfikar Abbas Naqvi expressed concern about the repeated adjournment requests, emphasizing the inconvenience to witnesses who have come from Dubai for cross-examination.

Despite the explanation regarding the ongoing dental surgery, the court expressed frustration.

Prosecutor Naqvi questioned lawyers appearances, suggesting a pattern of deliberate delays. Lawyer Raja defended the situation, saying that the adjournment request was not intentional but due to Sikandar’s dental surgery.

Judge Zulqarnain expressed anger, noting the previous adjournments and the importance of the case.

The said issue became a point of contention between the PTI leaders and special court judge after the former expressed distrust in the state’s counsels.

“How will [those] lawyers will represent us whom we do not trust? What’s the point of this?” Imran Khan questioned Judge Zulqarnain.

“We do not understand the English being spoken by the state-appointed lawyers,” the former prime minister complained while calling for the case proceedings to be held in Urdu.

“I have been asking for three months to be allowed to meet the lawyers before the hearing,” the PTI founder said while complaining that despite repeated requests, he hasn’t been allowed to consult with his counsels.

“How will the case proceed if [we are] not allowed to have consultations with [our] lawyers?” he stressed.

“What’s happening is contradictory to the prerequisites of a transparent trial. There has never been a trial in Pakistan’s history compared to what’s happening now,” Imran Khan said while urging the judge to direct “these infiltrators” to get out of the courtroom. He mocked the government lawyers, saying: “Maan Na Maan Mein Tera Mehman.”

In response to Khan’s complaint, Judge Zulqarnain said that he had given as much relief to him as possible.

“[I] approved your requests for [provision of] an exercise bike and [permission] for meeting your lawyers,” the judge said. The PTI founder lamented that despite the judge’s orders allowing him to hold meetings, the said meetings never took place.

Meanwhile, PTI’s Vice Chairman Qureshi also engaged in a heated argument with Judge Zulqarnain asking the latter to announce the verdict. “Do we not have any right to argue the case through our lawyers?

“Justice is being strangled... Our counsel are not being allowed to enter the jail,” Qureshi said.

The former foreign minister even took the file from the state-appointed lawyer and threw it on the wall as he expressed distrust in the state lawyers.

“[Our] defence is being handled by lawyers nominated by the prosecution. This proves that the case has already been decided,” the politico lamented.

“Your lawyers didn’t bother to come despite the date being fixed on three occasions. If you [Qureshi] want to cross-examine [the witnesses] yourself, then you can do that as well,” Judge Zulqarnain said while responding to Qureshi’s remarks and lamenting the politician’s lawyers’ failure to appear before the court.

“Shah sahib, what’s the point of delaying the case?” he questioned.

“I am not in jail by choice,” the PTI vice-chairman responded.

Following Khan and Qureshi’s expression of distrust in the state lawyers, the court directed the authorities to have the PTI leaders talk to their counsel on the phone and announced a break in the proceedings in light of consultations with lawyers.

When the hearing resumed after the break, the lawyers of Khan and Qureshi did not appear in the court. The state counsel completed the cross-examination of nine witnesses and the court adjourned the hearing till Monday (tomorrow).

The court said in the written order that when the hearing of the case started, no senior lawyer appeared in the court on behalf of the accused. The hearing of the case was resumed at 12:30pm. Even then, no senior lawyer appeared and several opportunities were provided to lawyers of the accused. The court was left with no option but to appoint a state defence counsel for the accused.