Advocate Imaan Mazari has filed a complaint with the Harassment Committee against Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, following a verbal altercation at the court.
Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, who heads the Women’s Harassment Inquiry Committee at the Islamabad High Court, has received the complaint against the chief justice.
The complaint requests an inquiry under the Protection Against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act to determine whether Chief Justice Dogar made gender-based and threatening remarks toward Imaan Mazari, and seeks to hold the chief justice accountable for harassment of the complainant.
Read: Imaan Mazari, CJ Dogar exchange heated words in IHC
Mazari further requested that the matter of harassment against the chief justice be forwarded to the competent authority, the Supreme Judicial Council.
The verbal altercation in question took place on Thursday between CJ Dogar and Mazari during the hearing of a petition seeking the removal of Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leader Mahrang Baloch's name from the Exit Control List (ECL). Mazari was representing the petitioner.
“You should keep your mouth shut and stay within the limits of respect,” the chief justice said, irked by remarks he alleged Mazari had made outside the scope of the case. He referred to her calling him a “dictator” and subsequently declined to issue directives on the matter at hand.
Directing further remarks at the petitioner’s lawyer, the chief justice said: “Ms Mazari will go downstairs and hold a programme saying a dictator is sitting in court.”
Imaan defended herself, saying her personal opinions were free speech and should not affect her client’s case. She said she was in court as a lawyer, not as an activist.
The exchange escalated as Justice Dogar warned Mazari of possible contempt charges. Turning to her husband and fellow lawyer, advocate Hadi Ali Chatta, he added: “Hadi sahib, explain it to her... if I catch her someday...”
Following the hearing, Mazari reiterated on the social media platform X that she had been present in court in a professional capacity. “I was there on behalf of my client, not as activist Imaan Mazari,” she wrote, stressing that she conducted herself “according to professional etiquette (and a court should do the same).”
The chief justice of the capital's high court had to clarify on Friday after different bars and lawyers' organizations "condemned" his conduct.
On Friday, a number of lawyers' bodies issued condemnatory statements, with the Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) demanding the removal of Justice Dogar from his post.
Read more: Dogar retreats amid lawyers' backlash
During the hearing of a case on Friday, Justice Dogar clarified his remarks, stating that Imaan Mazari was "like a daughter to him". "Yesterday I was advising her as an elder and as chief justice, but my words were taken out of context and blown out of proportion," he said.
The judge stated that he only cautioned her not to make personal comments about judges, and denied threatening to "catch" her. He added that when he mentioned contempt proceedings, it was only because repeated defiance could harm her career.
After the incident, Mazari filed an application with the registrar of the IHC on saturday, requesting access to CCTV footage of the incident.
Also read: Imaan Mazari requests CCTV footage following exchange with IHC chief justice
In her plea, Mazari asked the court to provide footage from September 11, between 9am. and 11am, specifically from Courtroom No. 1, where she said an “unfortunate incident” had taken place.
She also submitted a USB drive along with her application to facilitate the provision of the requested footage.
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