ISLAMABAD: A district and sessions court has rejected Imran Khan’s appeal in a case linked to threats made against a female judge.
Judge Abbas Khan announced the decision on Wednesday, dismissing Khan’s appeal concerning the case.
The incident in question arose from Imran’s public rally in Islamabad park in 2022, where he directed criticism at Additional District and Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry and other officials for placing Shahbaz Gill on remand.
The case involves sections 504 (intentional insult to provoke breach of peace) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Pakistan Penal Code, along with sections 188 (disobedience to a public servant’s order) and 189 (threat of injury to a public servant).
Subsequently, Khan issued an apology, citing that his remarks against the female judge were made in the heat of the moment during a political speech.
Imran’s lawyer, Salman Safdar, argued that the case was politically motivated and emphasized that with the tendered apology, there should no longer be a necessity to pursue the matter further.
Meanwhile, Barrister Gohar Khan has emerged as Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s candidate for the party’s chairmanship, confirmed PTI Senior Vice-President Sher Afzal Marwat. This decision follows Imran Khan’s choice to step away from the top post due to legal obstacles as the party gears up for internal polls.
“Barrister Gohar will be PTI’s candidate for chairmanship. The PTI chairman [Imran] has endorsed Gohar as his candidate for the position,” Marwat conveyed during a conversation with a private news channel.
Meanwhile, Imran remains in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, dealing with legal proceedings.
While several party leaders had hinted at Imran not contesting the intra-party elections, they had previously indicated that the final candidate would be revealed later. This development signifies the conclusion of Imran’s tenure in the key position he held since the party’s inception over two decades ago.
The PTI’s Core Committee, on Monday, formally approved conducting intra-party polls within the 20-day timeframe mandated by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). Failure to comply with the orders could result in the party losing its bat symbol.
Earlier, in an unexpected development, Imran Khan, the imprisoned leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), decided not to participate in the forthcoming party chairman election.
The decision was communicated by Mr. Khan’s lawyer, Sher Afzal Khan Marwat, citing the imminent risk of disqualification in the Tosha Khana case as the primary reason for this strategic step.
Speaking outside Adiala Jail to the media, Marwat elucidated that recent legal developments, particularly the Election Commission’s directive, significantly influenced Khan’s choice.
