•Eight prosecutors record statements; nine more at the next hearing
• Imran’s lawyers object to the video link arrangement of the PTI chief and will appeal the ATC order
• IHC’s request seeks to enforce the husband-and-wife rights of an incarcerated EX-PM spouse
RAWPINDI: Evidence against former Prime Minister Imran Khan and other PTI leaders may end next week. case Related to a Violent protest After May 9, 2023, outside Army Headquarters (GHQ) arrest Or Mr. Khan in a corruption case.
At the hearing, EX-PM Imran Khan also tagged his attendance from Adhiara Prison via video link, but connectivity issues have been married to the PTI leader’s appearance in court.
A Counter-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Rawalpindi recorded statements from eight witnesses prosecuted on Tuesday after the defense sought an extension to challenge the order that Khan appeared through a video link. The order is based on the Punjab government notice, guiding the trial process to be a hero linked through video, citing security issues.
ATC Judge Amjad Ali Shah ruled on September 19 that the trial will be held at a court venue instead of at Adiala prison, and Mr Khan’s attendance will be sold through video links. When the hearing resumed Tuesday, defense attorneys requested an adjournment, informing the judges that the legal team intends to appeal the September 19 order.
However, the executive trial held that the defense neither received any restraining order from the High Court nor challenged the order before the Appeal Forum. The judge then conducted testimony prosecuting witnesses when the defense attorney left the court, and later told reporters about connectivity issues in the video link arrangement.
The court recorded statements from eight witnesses prosecuted, including three officials from the FBI Cybercrime Force, who testified about tweets and other social media posts by PTI leaders before and during the May 9 protests.
Two Islamabad magistrates Awais Bhatti and Abdullah Khan also testified that they recorded statements by local leaders of PTI, Sadaqat Ali Abbasi, Wasiq Qayyum and Omar Tanveer Butt, who confirmed the allegations against Mr Khan and the party leaders.
According to Raja Ikram Ameen Minhas, the prosecution chief in the GHQ case, the testimony of 41 indicted witnesses has been completed so far, and the remaining nine witnesses will be generated at the next hearing.
He said cross-examination of the witness prosecuted will begin.
The court adjourned the case until September 27.
Mr Khan, who has been imprisoned in Adyara Prison since 2023, faces multiple cases, including GHQ protests. He was indicted in December last year and was arrested by Rawalpindi police in January 2024.
Couple rights
In addition, the Islamabad High Court issued a notice to the authorities asking Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi to exercise their husband-wife rights while in prison.
Judge Arbab Tahir accepted a petition under Article 199 of Shahid Yaqoob, a supporter resident of Islamabad and Imran.
The court issued a written order directing the Chief Commissioner of Islamabad, the Punjab Government, the Punjab Prison Warden and the Prison Prison Prison, among others, to submit their reply before the next hearing.
During the litigation process, the petitioner’s lawyers believe that Article 545A of the Criminal Procedure Code supports the protection of family life and provides a marriage relationship with the prisoner as a basic need.
He believes that denying husband-wife rights violates constitutional protection, international conventions and previous judicial rulings. It also cites the 2010 notice issued by the Sindh Ministry of Home Affairs in accordance with the direction of the Supreme Court, allowing convicted prisoners to visit every three months. In addition, the petition relies on the landmark Sariat Court judgment that treats the prisoner’s husband-and-wife rights as a fundamental right.
Posted at Dawn on September 24, 2025
