SC directs IHC to decide on Imaan, Hadi's sentence suspension pleas within two weeks

Bench keeps matter pending before itself until the high court rules, couple's counsel decries inaction on appeals

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday directed the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to decide on petitions seeking suspension of sentence filed by lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha within two weeks, while keeping the matter pending before itself until the high court reaches a decision.

A three-member bench headed by Justice Shahid Waheed heard the case, during which the couple's counsel, Faisal Siddiqi, informed the court that the IHC had only issued notices on the sentence appeals and that no further hearing had taken place on the appeals in over two months.

"There is no relief for us in the IHC," Siddiqi told the bench, arguing that the court should direct a decision on the sentence suspension petition.

Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan, however, noted that no adverse order had been passed against the petitioners either. "There is no order against you from the high court," he remarked, adding that the IHC had not dismissed the sentence suspension petition.

Read: SC registrar raises objections to Imaan Mazari's plea

The judge also questioned the legal parameters for suspending a sentence. "What are the parameters for suspending a sentence? When is a sentence suspended?" Justice Afghan asked, observing that had the high court rejected the plea, the SC could have gone into the merits of the case.

Siddiqi pushed back, questioning where the petitioners should turn given the absence of any relief from the IHC. "When no relief has been granted by the IHC, where should we go?" he said.

Justice Waheed suggested the court could issue an observation directing that the appeal be decided within two weeks, before the bench ultimately directed the IHC to decide the sentence suspension petitions.

Imaan, a rights activist and lawyer, and Chattha, an advocate, were in January 2026 handed a combined 17-year sentence on multiple charges linked to controversial social media posts that the prosecution argued amounted to an anti-state narrative under cybercrime laws.

Read More: FO rebuffs EU criticism over 'domestic affair' of Imaan, Hadi convictions

Last month, Imaan approached the SC seeking suspension of her sentence, moving the apex court after the IHC did not list her application for hearing. Filed through Siddiqi, the petition stated that despite her counsel's request to suspend the trial court's judgment, the IHC only issued notices on the suspension application on February 19, and that it did not suspend the petitioner's sentence.

Further, the petition argues that the trial court's order was completely illegal and clearly mala fide, as it violated due process requirements under Articles 10 and 10A of the Constitution of Pakistan, breaching mandatory provisions of Sections 233, 234, 353, 367, and 526 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1898.