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Sunday, 6 August, 2023 I 18 Muharram, 1445
Rs 15.00 | Vol XIV No 36 I 8 Pages I Islamabad Edition
IMRAN KHAN ARRESTED IN TOSHAKHANA CASE “GUILTY OF CORRUPT PRACTICES”
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TRIAL COURT HANDS DOWN THREE YEAR JAIL TERM, RS 100,000 FINE
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TECHNICALLY IMRAN NOW STANDS DISQUALIFIED FROM HOLDING ANY PUBLIC OFFICE FOR FIVE YEARS
PTI calls for countrywide peaceful protest against ‘unlawful arrest’ ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
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ISLAMABAD SALEEM JADOON
move being described as “to change in country’s political landscape”, former premier and PTI Chairman Imran Khan was arrested by the Punjab Police from his Zaman Park residence in Lahore shortly after an Islamabad trial court declared him guilty of “corrupt practices” in Toshakhana case and sentenced him to three years in prison. Lahore Capital City Police Chief Bilal Siddique Kamiana confirmed the arrest and told Reuters the former prime minister was being transferred to the capital. A Punjab Police team headed by SSP CIA Malik Liaquat took the PTI chief into custody and a picture of him sitting in a car with Imran Khan also went viral on social media. Khan was transferred from Lahore to Islamabad via motorway. He will be lodged in Attock Jail and kept in a lock-up in high security zone. Later, Punjab Inspector General Dr Usman Anwar confirmed the arrest and said that Imran was being shifted to Attock jail. The PTI chief was taken to PIMS Hospital on reaching the federal capital in a convoy, where he underwent a medical examination. The PTI chief who was absent from the court, was sentenced to three years in prison and fined Rs100,000 in the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) criminal complaint filed on charges of concealing details of Toshakhana gifts. The legal team of the PTI chief was also not present in the court at the time when the court pronounced the verdict.
The court also declared that the PTI chairman was involved in corrupt practices and had submitted a bogus affidavit with the Election Commission, ordering the Islamabad Police chief to arrest the convict immediately. After today’s verdict, Imran technically stands disqualified from holding any public office for five years under Article 63(1)(h) of the Constitution. The law states: “A person shall be disqualified from being elected or chosen as, and from being, a member of the Parliament if he has been, on conviction for any offence involving moral turpitude, sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years, unless a period of five years has elapsed since his release.” He, however, has the right to appeal the verdict. Earlier Saturday, the court hearing the Toshakhana case had reserved its judgment in the Toshakhana case which would be announced at 12:30pm as the defense counsel again failed to appear in person. The court had observed that the judgment would announced if the defence counsel did not appear before it by 12pm. Humayun Dilawar the additional sessions judge passed the order as the accused the PTI chairman – again failed to appear in person as he told the lawyer appearing on behalf of the main defense counsel that Khawaja Haris had been directed to attend the hearing by 8:30am which he failed to do so. During the hearing, senior lawyer Amjad Pervaiz and Saad Hassan appeared before the judge to represent the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). As the hearing began, the judge asked Amjad Per-
vaiz whether he wanted to say something. However, Khalid Chaudhry an associate lawyer representing Haris requested the court to give some time as the senior counsel was busy in a NAB court’s proceedings. During the hearing, Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Humayun Dilawar ruled that charges against the former prime minister in the case were proven. “Imran Khan deliberately submitted fake details to the Election Commission of Pakistan and is found guilty of corrupt practices,” he stated and sent the PTI chief to jail for three years under Section 174 of the Election Act. ADSJ Dilawar also directed that a copy of the order should be sent to the Islamabad police chief for the execution of the court orders. However, the ECP counsel interrupted to argue that giving time wasn’t an issue; however, the accused had also been directed to ensure his presence during the hearing. At this point, the judge asked Chaudhry whether he had the power of attorney to represent the accused in this case, to which he informed the judge that he didn’t and he was a junior lawyer of Barrister Gohar. When asked about the nature of the NAB case, Chaudhry replied that it pertained to the bail of PTI the chairman and his wife. When asked about the nature of the NAB case, Chaudhry replied that it pertained to the bail of PTI the chairman and his wife. On this, the ECP counsel again intervened and said Chaudhry didn’t inform when the senior counsel would appear before the session court and that the bail plea was scheduled to heard be at 2:30pm.
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday announced a countrywide peaceful protest against what it called “flawed and biased judgment” against PTI Chairman Imran Khan and his “unlawful arrest” in Thoshakhana case. The announcement was made in a PTI Core Committee emergency meeting, which was held with PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi in the chair. Earlier, PTI Chairman Imran Khan in a pre-recorded video message, urged the nation to continue their strongest and peaceful protests until they got the right to elect their government and not of a qabza mafia occupied the country at present. In a pre-recorded video message, PTI Chairman said: “My arrest is expected and by the time this message reaches you, I will be in jail but the people of the country should not sit at home and do not accept the slavery.” “In the wake of my arrest, I want you to continue peaceful protests and not to sit quietly inside your houses,” he appealed to the nation. “My movement is not for myself, but for you, for the future of your children,” he stressed. PTI Chairman recalled that Pakistan too was found on the concept of La illaha Ilallah, which means we bow before no one but Allah who is Al-Haq”. “If you will not stand up for your rights, you will live a life that is of slaves and slaves have no life. Slaves are similar to how ants Meanwhile, the judge observed that nonbailable warrants were issued if an accused failed to appear in person and that Haris too didn’t follow the directions to reach the court at 8:30. Before the decision was announced, Imran’s lawyer Khawaja Haris appeared before Judge Dilawar and informed the court that his legal team was barred from entering IHC premises. We want to file for the transfer of this case from your court, he said. However, the judge instructed him to either present final arguments before noon or the verdict will be issued.
Legal experts say judgement made in indecent haste, blatant violation of law ISLAMABAD
MIAN ABRAR
Legal wizards have termed the verdict against PTI chief Imran Khan as unjust judgement made in an indecent haste and in blatant violation of code of criminal procedure as well as the law. Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan said that the verdict would be suspend in first hearing of the case in Supreme Court and Imran Khan would get a bail most likely on Monday as the judge had no jurisdiction over the matter. He said under 193 CrPC the judge does not have jurisdiction until the matter is throughly probed. Salman Akram Raja Advocate said that Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice was responsible for the judgement against Imran Khan. “On 3.8.2023 the IHC CJ issued notice for ‘next week’ in the revision application filed by Mr Imran Khan against refusal by the trial judge to allow him to present witnesses in his defence. At the same time the CJ IHC directed the trial court to hear final arguments on 4.8. 2023,” he said. “While the IHC is yet to decide the question of defence evidence the trial court has given its verdict convicting IK. This is an absurd situation. It needs to be noted that there is no finding in the judgment that any gift was bought at an undervalued price,” he added. “There is no finding that any gift, in particular the watch, was sold for a price greater than that disclosed. For 2018/19 the only finding is that the gifts bought for Rs 21 mi(llion) were sold for Rs 58 mi but the full amount of Rs 58 million is not reflected in the bank statement,” he wrote, adding, “Only Rs 30 mi is reflected. How is this mis-declaration? Full sale proceeds
have been disclosed in Form B. Rs 28 million out of the sale price of Rs 58 million was cash in hand and expenditure made between the date of the sale and the cut off date for Form B, 30.6 2019,” Raja wrote. Intazar Hussain Panjutha Advocate said that while the IHC is yet to decide the question of defence evidence the trial court has given its verdict convicting IK. “This is an absurd situation. It needs to be noted that there is no finding in the judgment that any gift was bought at an undervalued price or that the purchase was not in accordance with the rules. Also no finding that any gift, in particular the watch, was sold for a price greater than that disclosed”. He said for 2018/19, the finding is that the gifts bought for Rs 21 mi in accordance with the rules are stated to have been sold for Rs 58 million. However, the full amount of Rs 58 million is not reflected in the account statement for the account in Bank Alfalah. “Only Rs 30 mi is reflected. How is this misdeclaration? Full sale proceeds has been disclosed in Form B. Rs 28 million out of the sale price of Rs 58 million could be cash in hand or expenditure made between the date of the sale and the cut off date for Form B. Defence witnesses who were proposed to be the financial consultants/accountants who had filled the forms would have explained this,” he added. Sajjad Hafeez Advocate termed the judgment was a violation of the Constitution as well as the code of criminal procedure Pakistan 1860. “It seems that the judge did not provide the accused enough time to defend himself according to the Constitution which gives the right to the accused for fair trial. Furthermore, according to the law, accused is the
favourite child of law. Since the judge made the decision in an indecent haste, this judgment is a blatant violation of the criminal procedure court as well as constitution of Pakistan,” he added. He said that there was negligence and ignorance on behalf of legal team and Imran Khan as they also did not follow the court orders. Lawyer Rida Hosain termed the trial unjust. “Article 10A of the Constitution guarantees an absolute and unqualified right to a fair trial and due process. The right to a fair trial includes an opportunity to defend the case against you, an adequate opportunity to prepare the defence, a right to a hearing, an independent and impartial judge etc. The fairness of the process is fundamental — it prevents arbitrary excesses and provides certain minimum safeguards. Justice must not only be done, but it must also be seen to be done,” she added. She added, however, that Section 366(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure states that a judgment shall not be deemed to be invalid by reason only of the absence of any party or his pleader on the day. “The fact that the verdict was announced in the absence of Imran Khan in and of itself is not enough to declare the conviction invalid,” she said. “Having said that, the manner in which the Toshakhana case was conducted raises serious questions on the fairness of the trial,” said Hosain. Commenting on the legal implications of the verdict, Hosain explained: “Under Article 63(1)(h) of the Constitution, an individual with a criminal conviction for an offence involving moral turpitude (carrying a sentence of at least two years) is subject to disqualification for five years after release.
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that’s crawled and did not fly high,” he added. Therefore, he urged the people to stand up for dignity and real freedom and break the shackles of slavery because this was a battle for their rights and freedom, which could not be offered in the plate. CORE COMMITTEE VOWS TO CONTINUE STRUGGLE Later, during the party’s core committee meeting, the participants discussed the decision of the Additional District and Sessions Judge in the Toshakhana case and the arrest of Chairman PTI in threadbare. They also held consultation on the future course of action including legal proceedings to ensure release of Imran Khan. During the meeting, PTI Core Committee also appealed to the Supreme Court (SC) to hear the PTI review petition against the biased decision sans any delay to ensure early release of PTI Chairman. It was said that in the light of the instructions of PTI Chairman, the party stared execution of the organizational and political strategy. They said that the entire nation rejected the wrong and one-sided decision of a certified biased judge, who delivered a verdict according to a pre-arranged plan after a fake trial and got the PTI Chairman arrested. The participants stated that there was great resentment and anger among the people of the country on the unlawful detention of Imran Khan under a well-thought-out plan.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 03 IMRAN TAKEN INTO CUSTODY WITHOUT ANY MAJOR RESISTANCE: Unlike previous instances, where Zaman Park was usually guarded by party supporters, Imran was taken into custody on Saturday without any major resistance. The PTI also confirmed this in a tweet, saying that the party chief didn’t resist the arrest. It claimed that the Lahore police arrived at Imran’s residence to “kidnap” him even before the written verdict of the trial court was released.
5.8 magnitude earthquake jolts parts of Punjab, KP
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ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
A 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck parts of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday night, according to the National Seismic Monitoring Centre. The quake’s epicentre was Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush region with a depth of 196 kilometres and it occurred around 9:02pm, the earthquake monitoring agency said. No loss of life or property has been reported so far. The quake was felt in Islamabad, Peshawar, Dir, Malakand, Bajaur, Swat, Kohat, Mansehra, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, DI Khan, Mirpur, Daudkhel, Chiniot, Parachinar, Nankana Sahib, Sahiwal, Chichawatni and Battagram. Media reported that tremors were also felt in the Indian capital and its surrounding areas, northern parts of the country and occupied Kashmir. The disaster management authority in Pakistan’s Punjab said in a statement administrations across the province were checking buildings while machinery and staff had been put on alert to deal with the aftershocks. In Peshawar, people came out of their homes and shops in fear. The earthquake was the third one that was felt in the northern areas of Pakistan, he said, citing data from the US Geological Survey (USGS). Tremors were felt in KP earlier today when, according to the USGS, a 4.1 magnitude earthquake occurred at 6:58am at a depth of 241.8km with its epicentre in Tajikistan. The second earthquake occurred at 1:06pm and had a magnitude of 5.0. Its epicentre was in KP’s Shangla and depth was measured at 43.5km.
Polls likely to be delayed as CCI gives 2023 census results thumbs up ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
The Council of Common Interests (CCI) on Saturday “unanimously” approved the results of the 2023 digital census, signifying a likely delay of three to four months in the upcoming general elections scheduled to take place later this year. The government has announced that assemblies will be dissolved on August 9, following which elections should be held within 90 days after end of the assemblies’ tenure. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif presided over the meeting in which coalition partners also participated. The single-point agenda of the meeting was to deliberate over the population census. The meeting, attended by chief ministers
of all four provinces, federal ministers, and various department heads, was told that Pakistan’s population has surged to 241.49 million. During an interview earlier this week, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that elections would be held on the basis of the latest census, while the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has already expressed its inability to hold general polls on the basis of the new population count within the stipulated time as it will have to conduct a fresh delimitation of constituencies in this case. Meanwhile, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM) and PPP — two of the government’s allies in the Centre — had expressed reservations about the new census. Yesterday, PPP senators in the upper house of Parliament also termed the decision to hold the elections on the basis of the new census a tactic to delay the polls.
However, the PMO statement said the chief ministers of all four provinces and representatives of all political parties were in agreement on the new census results at the CCI’s 50th meeting today, which was chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. LAW MINISTER SEES A DELAY OF 2-2.5 MONTHS AT MOST IN POLLS: Earlier, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar also told Geo News that the new census results were “unanimously” approved at the CCI meeting. When asked about a delay in the elections, he defended the PML-N-led government’s decision by citing Article 51 of the Constitution, which seats that National Assembly (NA) seats should be allocated to administrative units “on the basis of population in accordance with the last preceding census officially published”.
Tarar also referred to a 2021 CCI decision to hold the next elections on the basis of the 2023 census as “provinces had reservations about the old (2017) census”. The law minister said it was now up to the ECP to set begin and complete the delimitation of constituencies on the basis of the new population count. “There is an outer limit of 120 days … and it now depends on the ECP how soon it begins this process and completes the delimitation.” He was of the view that if the delimitation was carried out in an effective and efficient manner, it could be completed in less than 120 days. “I believe that polls will then be delayed but two to two and a half months at the most,” he added. Asked whether the caretaker setup would need any legal or constitutional cover in case of an extended term due to delay in
the elections, he replied in the negative. The law minister also maintained that the new population count would not have any effect on the distribution of seats among administrative units in the NA. The distribution would remain unchanged, he insisted, adding that the initial census results had been reviewed and revised following a scientific audit. PUNJAB LEADS WITH OVER 120 MILLION POPULATION: Punjab leads with over 120 million inhabitants, followed by Sindh with more than 50 million, KhyberPakhtunkhwa with over 30 million, and Balochistan with over 20 million population, as reported by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. The Ministry of Planning and Development provided insights into the digital census, and the meeting marked the final approval for Pakistan’s first-ever digital census.
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