Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh dismissed the plea by upholding the objection raised by the LHC registrar’s office over the absence of Imran’s signatures on the power of attorney.
As per rumours, plans were underway to try him for the May 9 riots through a “court martial”, the plea said.
The petition was filed by Advocate Uzair Karamat Bhandari requesting that Imran “be retained in civilian hands and subject to the jurisdiction of civilian courts.”
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It reads, “[…] Rumours started circulating that Petitioner No. 1 [Imran Khan] will be shifted to the custody of army authorities today (i.e. 25.7.2024) in connection with the very cases which form the subject matter of Writ Petition No. 45901 of 2024 and connected matters”, the petition read.
It said that Imran had just a few days ago expressed the apprehension — which was also widely reported in the media — that plans were “afoot to try him for the events of 9 May through a court martial”.
“It appears that the implementation of those plans has been accelerated because of the proceedings in the aforementioned case,” the petition added.
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It also requested that the respondents — including the Punjab and Islamabad inspector-generals, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and others — be “restrained from handing over the custody of [Imran] to army authorities.”
As per the plea, the LHC in its Wednesday hearing raised concerns about the legality of the action taken and orders passed against Imran, which created “a sense of panic in the ranks of those who are desperate to keep him behind bars on one pretext or the other.”
If the army detained Imran, it would be “a complete travesty of justice and due process”, it added. “It will be completely against the law declared by a 5-member bench of the Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan.”
On May 9, 2023, PTI activists held protests after the paramilitary Rangers whisked away Imran from the IHC in a corruption case. While protests against his arrest were underway, social media was flooded with footage of rioting and vandalism at various spots, including the Lahore Corps Commander’s residence and General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.
