A special Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) rejected on Saturday the plea of Aleema Khan, the sister of the PTI founder, to be granted permission to travel to the UK for fundraising for Shaukat Khanum Hospital and NUML University.
The court also dismissed her request for exemption from appearing in the GHQ attack, May 9 tragedy cases, and the November 26 protests cases.
In her application, Aleema Khan's lawyer, Faizal Malik, argued that the petitioner is a member of the Board of Governors of NUML University and wishes to travel abroad to raise funds for a noble cause. He mentioned that NUML University is facing financial challenges, and the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had ordered her name to be removed from the Provisional National Identification List (PNIL).
The petitioner sought exemption from attendance for only three weeks, noting that the charge sheet in the case against her had not yet been submitted, so personal appearance was unnecessary. She was also ready to provide an undertaking.
Ali Bukhari, another lawyer, argued that since the trial had not yet started, the petitioner's personal appearance was not essential. He added that in similar cases, the court had previously granted relief to the accused, and the petitioner's purpose for going abroad was not for personal reasons but for a noble cause.
Public Prosecutor Zahid Shah stated that the prosecution had no objections to the noble cause. He pointed out that Aleema Khan had filed a pre-arrest bail application in the same case where she was seeking exemption, and her pre-arrest bail hearing is scheduled for May 21.
He also noted that there are 11 additional cases registered against her in Rawalpindi, and she has not been granted bail in any of these cases.
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