IHC refers Afridi’s petition seeking meeting with Imran for provincial budget consultations to chief justice

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has referred to the chief justice a petition filed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and Finance Adviser Muzammil Aslam seeking permission to meet incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan for consultations on the upcoming provincial budget, it emerged on Thursday.

Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro passed the order after being informed that several identical petitions relating to jail meetings with the PTI founder were already pending before a larger bench of the IHC.

The petitioners had challenged objections raised by the Registrar’s Office regarding the maintainability of their petition and requested an urgent hearing in view of the budget preparation process in KP.

During the hearing, Advocate Ali Bukhari appeared on behalf of the petitioners and argued that the request related to a meeting for consultations on the provincial budget and was therefore distinct. He informed the court that previous judicial orders and decisions in similar matters had already been placed on record.

The Registrar’s Office presented a report and a list of pending petitions concerning jail meetings with the PTI founder. According to the report, a larger bench had already been constituted to hear identical matters relating to prison visits.

Justice Soomro observed that although the KP cabinet had approved the proposed consultation, the petition had been filed by the chief minister and finance adviser in their individual capacities rather than by the provincial government itself.

Advocate Bukhari contended that the necessity of a consultative meeting for budget preparation was a matter requiring judicial determination and could not be decided through administrative objections raised by the Registrar’s Office. He also stressed the urgency of the matter due to the ongoing budget process.

The court directed the petitioners to place their objections before it through a formal note and observed that an order would be issued after examining the matter.

In a written order issued later, Justice Soomro stated that the Registrar of the High Court had submitted a report showing that similar petitions were already pending before a larger bench. Consequently, the file was referred to the IHC chief justice for appropriate orders regarding further proceedings.

Imran — imprisoned since Aug 5, 2023, for concealing details of Toshakhana gifts — is serving a 14-year sentence at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail in a £190 million corruption case, also known as the Al-Qadir Trust case.

The KP chief minister has made regular attempts to visit the PTI leader in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, but has been unsuccessful in securing a meeting. Last month, along with his entire provincial cabinet and national and provincial lawmakers, he was stopped by the Islamabad police en route to the jail after exiting the M-1 motorway.

The IHC has allowed the ex-premier to have twice-a-week meetings — on Tuesdays and Thursdays — with his family, lawyers and other associates. Despite the order, the former premier has been restricted from meeting visitors for several months.