LAHORE – The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday declared the notification issued by the Interior Ministry for presenting PTI founder Imran Khan before an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) via the video link as null and void.
A LHC division bench led by Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh issued a detailed verdict regarding the plea to present Imran Khan via video link in the ATC.
The court declared the Ministry of Interior’s notification to present Imran Khan via video link during his physical remand as illegal. It stated that, according to the law, this matter should have been presented before the Cabinet, and the notification under anti-terrorism laws could not be issued individually.
The LHC ruled that the Punjab Home department issued the video link notification without Cabinet approval.
While the crimes under the Anti-Terrorism Act are highly dangerous, the Constitution addressed the fundamental rights of accused individuals. Presenting accused individuals via video link during physical remand could affect their fundamental rights.
The LHC in its verdict held that although there had been several amendments to the ATA law, no change was made to Section 21-E regarding physical remand.
The court acknowledged that an accused could be presented via video link during trial but could not be presented through video link while on physical remand.
The decision stated that the Lahore High Court (LHC) declared the notification issued by the Interior Minister on July 15, 2024 regarding PTI founder Imran Khan via video link as null and void, and accepted the application of the PTI founder.
It may be mentioned here that Imran Khan, the founder of PTI, had challenged notification for his appearance before the court through a video link presentation in 12 cases related to the events of May 9 in Lahore for physical remand.
