The five-member bench accepted Khan’s written apology for comments he made against officials during a protest in August.
Islamabad, Pakistan – A court in the Pakistani capital Islamabad has accepted former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s written apology for comments he made against a female judge in August, giving him relief. case of contempt.
The five-member bench, led by Chief Justice Athar Minallah of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), expressed satisfaction with Monday’s apology, adding that the ruling was unanimous.
Khan was charged with contempt of court following a speech he gave at a public rally in Islamabad on August 20 in which he threatened to “take action” against Judge Zeba Chaudhry and his colleagues. Islamabad’s senior police official for the arrest of his top aide Shahbaz Gill, whom he has accused the police of. tortured incarceration.
Gill has been accused of trying to incite a mutiny within Pakistan’s powerful army following remarks made on a television program, an allegation that Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party negate.
Khan initially refused to apologize for his comments but eventually did so during his final hearing on September 22.
If he is found guilty, he could be disqualified from running in the next election, scheduled for October next year.
Khan still has another case before the court regarding similar remarks made in his August speech, which he released on bail on the Sunday after the arrest warrant was issued the day before. He has been charged under different sections of the Pakistan Penal Code for the same speech.
He was also charged under the country’s anti-terrorism law for his August 20 speech, but a court reduced fees last month. The IHC said Khan’s comments did not bring charges under the draconian Anti-Terrorism Act, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and even the death penalty.
Khan’s government was overthrown through parliament vote of no confidence in April of this year and since then he has waged protests across the country, demanding early elections.
He also alleges a US-led foreign regime change plot behind the removal of his government, which US and Pakistani officials both deny.
