Imran accuses IHC CJ of ‘deep, settled bias’

Requests SC to transfer all his cases from capital’s high court to PHC, LHC

ISLAMABAD:

While requesting the apex court to transfer all his cases being adjudicated in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to some provincial high courts, PTI chief Imran Khan has levelled serious allegations against the IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, accusing him of "deep and settled bias".

In a petition moved in the Supreme Court on Wednesday, the former prime minister said he is being held in Attock jail after being "convicted on a cooked up and fabricated charge after a 'trial' in gross abuse of due process". Imran primarily blamed the IHC chief justice for this “injustice”.

"More than sufficient incontrovertible evidence is available to establish the deep and settled bias of the CJ IHC towards the petitioner," the application read, accusing him of "endeavouring to do everything to keep the petitioner behind bars with the intent that he be unable to contest the forthcoming general elections and thus be ousted from the politics of Pakistan."

Imran also accused Islamabad Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Humayun Dilawar of "despising" him. He claimed that CJ Farooq found "a ready and willing instrument" in the local judge "to advance their common objective".

Judge Dilawar on August 5 sentenced the former PM to three years in prison in a gift repository—Toshakhana—case.

"In fact, the hon’ble CJ IHC handsomely rewarded the learned ASJ after their common project had been achieved through the petitioner’s aforesaid illegal conviction," he alleged.

The petitioner also raised objections to Judge Dilawar's verdict in the gift repository, while highlighting how "the learned CJ IHC has demonstrated his bias and prejudice against the petitioner" across cases.

Imran accused that the IHC chief justice delayed in the announcement of verdict in the infidelity case and deliberately refrained “from restraining the bludgeoning" of the petitioner during his arrest by paramilitary rangers from the court premises on May 9.

"He (Justice Farooq) enabled the disturbing images to be seen across the country. Later he held that the petitioner’s arrest was lawful and in a lawful manner.

“The Hon’ble SC [Supreme Court] found otherwise. But there are too many people including the petitioner with the settled belief that the entire episode was acted as per the script of which the learned CJ IHC was a major protagonist. How can the petitioner expect any justice from him? " he asked.

Imran requested the SC to "transfer all cases, investigation, inquires, trials, in which the petitioner is a party/respondent/accused from the IHC to the Lahore High Court or the Peshawar High Court" and in the meantime to restrain the IHC to continue with the aforesaid trails/proceedings."

The PTI chief had previously also expressed a lack of confidence in the bench of judges including CJ Farooq hearing the gift repository case.

He had requested that the IHC chief justice recuse himself from hearing the high profile case and transfer it to another court.