ATC judge's conduct under scrutiny

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has referred a misconduct allegation leveled against Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain to its administrative committee.

In its written order granting pre-arrest bail to PTI leader Aamir Masood Mughal, a division bench comprising Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir addressed the allegation.

Mughal, booked in March last year for allegedly leading a group of rioters that set a police van on fire, applied for pre-arrest bail at the ATC-1.

During a hearing on February 6, Mughal appeared in the court of ATC-I judge and requested the court to adjourn the hearing on the petition until after the February 8 general elections, in which the accused participated as an independent candidate backed by the PTI.

The judge accepted the request and adjourned the matter until February 13.

"The learned counsels [for Mughal] stated at the bar that the presiding officer [Judge Zulqarnain] dictated and announced such an order in the open court. However, later they were informed that the said petition [for pre-arrest bail] has been dismissed for non-prosecution."

According to the order, the IHC asked the petitioner and his lawyers to submit separate affidavits before the court, and they later submitted affidavits affirming the facts.

The court noted that the investigation officer in the case also confirmed the statements of the petitioner and his counsels that the ATC-I on February 6 had adjourned the hearing until February 13.

"At this juncture, we will exercise restraint to record observations regarding the conduct of the presiding officer [ATC-I judge] in the light of the principle and law laid down by the Supreme Court. However, a separate note is being submitted on the administrative side," the order said.

Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain also presides over a special court formed last year to hear cases registered under the Official Secrets Act, 1923.

He convicted PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on January 30 while hearing a case about the alleged misuse of a diplomatic cipher by the PTI leaders during the last days of the party’s government in March 2022.