The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has postponed the consideration of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s requests to suspend his conviction in two cases involving the gift repository and diplomatic cipher.
The court will, however, review Imran’s appeal against his conviction on March 5.
Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were convicted in the gifts repository case on January 31, receiving 14 years in prison each. Additionally, on January 30, Imran and former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi were sentenced to ten years in prison for allegedly misusing a diplomatic cipher.
The trio appealed the court’s decisions and filed petitions to suspend their convictions. The IHC, led by Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, heard these petitions. Justice Aurangzeb mentioned that the court usually doesn’t allow suspension of convictions in criminal cases, and as the matter is in the Supreme Court, they defer Imran Khan’s request indefinitely.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor explained that their special prosecutor couldn’t attend due to a family death, requesting a deferral until March. The assistant attorney general noted the need for special prosecutors for the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in the cipher case and requested an adjournment until the FIA appoints them.
Imran’s lawyer, Salman Safdar, argued that the trial court rushed proceedings without allowing the accused to present their case. Justice Farooq mentioned that the IHC would review trial court decisions based on court records. The hearing on the appeal against the trial court’s decisions is adjourned until March 5.