Petition names PM Shehbaz, four other officials as respondents and seeks contempt proceedings for the alleged breach
Former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan speaks with Reuters during an interview, in Lahore, Pakistan March 17, 2023. — REUTERS
ISLAMABAD:
Dr Uzma Khan on Wednesday filed a second contempt of court petition before the Supreme Court over alleged noncompliance with its August 18 order allowing former prime minister Imran Khan to communicate digitally with his sons and meet his sisters weekly.
The petition named Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and four other officials as respondents, alleging that the court’s directives had once again not been implemented. According to the petition, Imran had been denied a meeting with his sisters on September 1 and had been unable to communicate with his sons since March.
The petition was filed by Dr Uzma, sister of the incarcerated former premier, through SC Advocate Uzair Karamat Bhandari under Articles 187 and 204 of the Constitution. It sought contempt proceedings against the respondents and implementation of the apex court’s August 18 order.
The petition argued that, according to a Supreme Court judgment, responsibility for ensuring compliance with a court order rested with the chief executive, namely the Prime Minister’s Office. It asked the court to apply the principle laid down in the Yousuf Raza Gilani contempt of court case to the present matter and ensure implementation of its August 18 order.
The respondents included Rawalpindi Central Jail (Adiala) Superintendent Sajid Baig, Punjab Inspector General of Prisons Mian Salik Jalal, Ministry of Interior Secretary Ahmed Sarwar Raza and Islamabad Capital Territory Chief Commissioner Sohail Ashraf.
The petition alleged that Imran’s sisters — Dr Uzma Khan, Noreen Niazi and Aleema Khan — and his cousin Qasim Zaman had been barred from meeting him despite the Supreme Court’s directions.
It further alleged that no arrangements had been made to facilitate telephone conversations between Imran and his sons, Kasim Khan and Sulaiman Khan, twice a week as directed by the court.
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The petition asked the Supreme Court to “direct and/or take all appropriate steps” to implement its August 18 order, particularly the directions concerning weekly meetings between Imran and his sisters and cousin, as well as twice-weekly phone calls with his sons.
Two separate miscellaneous applications were also filed seeking permission to place additional documents on record in support of the contempt petition.
The latest petition followed an earlier contempt case over the government’s failure to comply with the Supreme Court’s August 18 order concerning Imran’s medical treatment.
The SC had ordered that Imran be transferred to Shifa International Hospital for examination and treatment by a multidisciplinary medical board. It had also directed the government to facilitate weekly meetings between him and his family.
Instead, Imran had been taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences on August 21 for a medical examination and had later been returned to Adiala Jail after doctors declared him “medically fit”.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar had said the decision to take Imran to the government-run hospital had been prompted by the security situation involving Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers outside the facility and along the route to Shifa International Hospital. The move had prompted the PTI to file a contempt petition before the Supreme Court on August 22.
The petition had been filed by Dr Uzma, Advocate Uzair Bhandari and PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja. PTI had later resubmitted it after addressing objections raised by the Supreme Court registrar, with the apex court fixing September 16 for its hearing.
