Imran Khan orders to expel legislators absent on voting day for 26th constitutional amendment. PHOTO: PIXABAY
LAHORE:
The Lahore High Court (LHC) has referred a petition by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding president Imran Khan, seeking that a single case arising out of the May 9 incidents be tried, to a two-judge bench for further hearing.
The court has scheduled the next hearing before a two-member bench headed by Justice Shehbaz Rizvi on December 4.
During the hearing, Chief Justice Aaliya Neelum expressed strong displeasure over the presence of an unusually large number of lawyers on the podium.
The court ordered all lawyers except Latif Khosa to leave the gallery, but some lawyers, including Intizar Panjotha, later came forward despite the order.
The petitioners insisted that multiple FIRs of the same nature should not lead to multiple identical trials and demanded that the court direct that only one trial be conducted in connection with the events of May 9.
The hearing was marked by visible irritation on the part of the court after many lawyers gathered at the gallery.
Chief Justice Aaliya Neelum, addressing the courtroom, noted that the petition had attracted so many lawyers that it had effectively overcrowded the gallery: This petition is so important that so many lawyers have come to the gallery, she observed.
After ordering all lawyers except senior advocate Latif Khosa to leave the gallery, the court’s instructions were not fully heeded.
When lawyer Intizar Panjotha returned to the podium, the chief justice confronted Latif Khosa, asking why other lawyers had appeared alongside him. “It appears you are unwilling to follow the court’s instructions,” she said, pressing Khosa for an explanation.
The petition filed on behalf of the PTI founder argues that multiple first information reports (FIRs) containing the same or similar allegations arising from the May 9 incidents should not result in separate and parallel criminal trials. The lawyer urged the LHC to order consolidation or allow only one trial on the common or main charges.
After hearing initial arguments and taking note of the sensitivities involved, the court transferred the case to a two-judge panel.
