Bushra Bibi applies for parole

ISLAMABAD: Bushra Bibi, wife of Pakistan Movement for Justice (PTI) founder Imran Khan, filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Saturday seeking suspension of sentence and subsequent release in the I don’t know Case.

“It is imperative to decide on the suspension of the sentence of the plaintiff (Bushra) as early as possible in the interest of justice,” said the application filed by the former First Lady through her lawyer Barrister Salman Safdar.

The petition laments Bushra’s “long imprisonment” and underlines her right to a suspension of her sentence.

“In the interest of justice, it is imperative that a decision be taken as early as possible on the suspension of the plaintiff’s (Bushra) sentence,” the plea states.

Khan and Bushra were each sentenced to seven years in prison in February this year after a court found that their Nikah as fraudulent after Khawar Maneka, the ex-husband of the former First Lady, had sued the court against their marriage, stressing that during their marriage I don’t know Period.

In its detailed 51-page judgment, the court found that the marriage was a sign of dishonesty and imposed a fine of Rs 500,000 each, with an additional four months’ imprisonment for failure to pay.

The couple had subsequently appealed against the conviction in a district and sessions court – a case that was referred to Additional District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majuka after Maneka expressed her distrust of Justice Shahrukh Arjumand.

The development angered the former ruling party, which claimed it was a “deliberate delay in the administration of justice”.

In a statement, the party’s core committee said that Khan and Bushra Bibi deserved immediate release from prison. It claimed that the pace of the trials against the two was being “deliberately delayed” by postponing the hearings with rescheduled dates – an argument also made in the former first lady’s petition to the IHC.

In her plea, Bushra complained about the “miserable conditions” during her detention in Adiala Jail and the “political harassment” against her and Khan.

The petition also points to contradictory evidence and unsustainable pieces of evidence, so that they cannot serve as a basis for conviction.

“The plaintiff has no previous criminal record and is willing to provide bail for her release to the full satisfaction of this honorable court,” the petition states.

Meanwhile, the IHC registrar has raised numerous objections to the former First Lady’s application, stressing that an application can be made if a suspension case is already pending before a district court or court.

The appeals also address which decision of the lower court was appealed and how the same type of remedy can be sought in two courts.

It is to be noted that Bushra had earlier moved a district and sessions court in the federal capital seeking an early hearing of her appeals against her conviction in the I don’t know Case.

During yesterday’s hearing presided over by Justice Majuka, the court gave notice to all parties and adjourned the case to June 11.