Negotiations ongoing for Bushra’s jail relocation

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) was informed on Tuesday that the lawyers for the state and Bushra Bibi, wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, were engaged in negotiations for an out-of-court settlement on the issue of her shifting to Adiala Central Jail from the current Bani Gala sub-jail.

Hearing Bibi’s appeal, IHC Justice Miangul Hasan Aurangzeb, expressed his displeasure with the absence of Bibi's lawyer Usman Riaz Gill. He remarked that parties to the case were playing politics with the court. He noted the irony of seeking relief through writs and then engaging in delaying tactics.

The state counsel told the court that both the parties wanted some more time, as the talks were ongoing. He hoped that an agreement would be reached soon. However, the judge expressed surprise, saying: “What agreement?”
Justice Hasan Aurangzeb observed that the court was very concerned about the pendency of the case. Lawyer Khalid Chaudhry said that Gill was busy at the district court in the Iddat Nikkah case against Bibi, therefore he could not appear in the IHC. The court adjourned the hearing till May 2.

Read IHC orders Bushra’s medical tests from private lab

Justice Miangul Hasan Aurangzeb also disposed of Bibi’s another for her medical tests, after the state counsel informed the court that the tests were conducted at Al-Shifa hospital and there was nothing wrong with her health.
In her plea Bibi had expressed the fear that she had been poisoned. To a court query, the state counsel said that no effects of poison had been found, adding that as per the tests, which were conducted under the supervision of Dr Asim Yusuf, Bibi was fine. After that the court disposed of the petition.

In the meanwhile, District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjamand heard Bibi and Imran’s appeals against their conviction in the Iddat Nikkah case. The judge rejected a request from Bibi’s first husband, Khawar Maneka, for transfer of the case.

During the hearing, Maneka, who was the complainant in the original case, expressed his lack of confidence in Judge Arjumand and requested that the case be transferred to another court. PTI lawyer Salman Akram opposed the request, saying that it might fall under contempt of the court.

Later, while pronouncing the reserved ruling on the request, the judge rejected Manika's plea and adjourned the hearing till May 8. He directed that if arguments were not presented on the next hearing, the court would announce its verdict on the appeals.