Islamabad: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday asked District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand to hear a case related to the marriage of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi.
The case was transferred to the Additional District court and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majuk for further hearing.
The IHC order came a few days after the judge wrote to the IHC registrar stating that it was inappropriate to pronounce the verdict in the said court because of the submissions made by ex-husband and petitioner Bushra Khawar Maneka.
He asked the registrar to transfer Bushra and Khan’s impeachment petition to another court.
In his letter, the judge complained that Maneka and his lawyer were constantly harassed during the trial.
Judge Arjumand wrote after Maneka herself told the judge she was not sure.
“I don’t want this case to go away,” her ex-husband told the judge at the May 29 hearing.
“What’s the reason?
“Tell me if there is a clear reason for this […] some judges will decide at the end of this trial,” Justice Arujmand said, adding that the court had rejected Maneka’s motion of no confidence. judge and requested that this case be transferred to another court.
Later that day, Maneka was defeated by PTI lawyers to face the case.
During the hearing of Bushra and Khan’s appeal against their convictions in the iddat case, Judge Arjumand entered his room without pronouncing the verdict.
Following the development, the PTI lawyer threw a bottle into the courtroom, prompting Maneka’s lawyer to pick him up.
The court reserved its decision on the appeal to be announced on May 23.
In January, Maneka challenged Khan and Bushra Bibi’s marriage, calling it a sham and noting that the marriage was during the iddat period (the time when a woman would be isolated after divorce or the death of her husband).
A jury in February sentenced the couple to seven years in prison and fined the couple $5,000,000.
The court said in its 51-page verdict that both the accused, Khan and Bushra, were involved in a “fake” 2018 marriage.
PTI’s information secretary Raoof Hasan explained the possibility of a verdict in favor of Khan and Bushra Bibi: “We know what should be stated in the verdict of the Iddat case. In fact, the court is used in political matters that should not be and the court should not be allowed to be used.”
