Rawalpindi: Former Prime Minister and incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan voiced his support for the lawyers’ protest movement against the “unconstitutional” appointment of judges on Tuesday, calling the 26th Amendment an “attack” on the judicial system.
His remarks were conveyed to the media outside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail by his legal counsel, Faisal Chaudhry.
These comments came a day after the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) approved the appointment of six new judges to the Supreme Court, amid a boycott by PTI lawmakers and two senior judges. Earlier, three judges from Sindh, Balochistan, and Lahore were transferred to the Islamabad High Court, drawing strong criticism from the legal community.
PTI Senator Hamid Khan had said on Monday that the lawyer community would challenge the appointment of the six judges in the top court and vowed to continue the “protest movement.”
Moreover, all three representative bar councils of the federal capital — Islamabad Bar Council (IBC), Islamabad High Court Bar Association (IHCBA), and Islamabad District Bar Association (IDBA) — announced the launch of a long march during the hearing of the 26th Amendment-related petitions.
Talking to journalists after his meeting with the jailed prime minister, his counsel, Faisal Chaudhry, said: “The PTI founder directs the party leadership to support the lawyers’ movement against the [unconstitutional] judges’ appointment.”
He urged the concerned authorities to pay attention to the open letters written by Imran to Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir. Faisal quoted Imran as saying that there was no rule of law in the country.
Taking a dig at the establishment, the lawyer said that instead of taking action against terrorism, they were chasing PTI supporters.
The PTI founder was being tried in a controlled environment, the lawyer said, adding that they pleaded for Khan’s trial in an open court. He further said that the PTI founder was not being given the right to a fair trial.
Currently, an IMF delegation is visiting Pakistan, he said, adding that Leader of the Opposition Omar Ayub would present a dossier to them.
The dossier contains all the details from the past two and a half years, including political victimization, torture, and martyrdom of PTI workers at the hands of law enforcers, the lawyer added.
