The special court established to hear cases related to the Official Secrets Act on Monday issued a notice to the superintendent of Adiala jail for going against the orders of the court by not allowing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan to talk to his sons, Sulaiman Isa Khan and Qasim Khan.
Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain heard the case where the deposed premier’s counsel Shiraz Ahmed Ranjha filed an application to take action against the superintendent. In his petition, Imran stated that contempt of court proceedings should be initiated against the jail official for not following the court orders. “The jail authorities should be ordered to implement the order to allow the PTI chairman to talk to his sons, Qasim and Sulaiman”. Subsequently, the court adjourned the hearing till November 8.
The special court permitted Imran to talk to his sons on WhatsApp on Saturday.
During the hearing of the application filed by Advocate Shiraz Ahmad Ranjha, a stand was taken that the court had already allowed the former prime minister to talk to his sons. “Special permission should be given to Imran Khan to talk to his sons on WhatsApp on Saturday.”
Imran had filed an application earlier seeking the court’s approval to engage in weekly conversations with his sons. However, owing to Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain’s unavailability, no action was taken on Imran’s plea.
Last month, an Attock jail superintendent objected and hindered compliance with the court’s order to allow Imran to speak with his sons over phone calls. He had said the prison manual prohibits phone calls for those charged under the Official Secrets Act.
However, the judge later ordered the Adiala jail superintendent to enable a telephone conversation between Imran and his sons via WhatsApp, while noting the standard operating procedures (SOPs) for arranging conversations between the accused and their relatives. The conversation, held via WhatsApp, lasted for 30 minutes and was arranged by the jail superintendent between 4:30 pm and 5 pm. Reports suggest that while Imran’s sons, residing in the United Kingdom with their mother, became emotional during the interaction, their father remained composed and reassuring. The trial against Imran involves allegations of misusing a diplomatic cypher. He is currently detained in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, having previously been in Attock Jail after a conviction in the Toshakhana (gifts repository) case on August 5. Imran was arrested on May 9 by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on charges of corruption related to the Al-Qadir Trust. He asserts that the cases against him are fabricated and vows to prove his innocence.
