RAWALPINDI – A special court established under the Official Secrets Act has appointed state defence counsels for PTI founder Imran Khan and his deputy Shah Mahmood Qureshi after their lawyers failed to show up before court.
Special court’s Judge Abul Hasnat Mohammad Zulqarnain has issued the order for Friday’s hearing. It states that multiple opportunities were provided to their legal representatives for appearance but they did not appear.
The court said it was left with no option but to appoint state defence counsels for the suspects in order to proceed with the case.
It said that Malik Abdul Rehman Advocate has been appointed as counsel for Imran Khan while Hazrat Younis Advocate will represent Qureshi in the case.
Both lawyers will cross-examine the witnesses on behalf of the PTI leaders, who are incarcerated in Adiala Jail, during today’s hearing.
On Friday, the FIA prosecutor asked the Special Court to seize the right of the Imran Khan’s lawyer to cross-examine the witnesses, accusing the defence lawyers of using delaying tactics to prolong the trial.
FIA special prosecutor Raja Rizwan Abbasi informed the judge that a witness had come from the UAE to attend the court proceedings, but the defence counsel did not join the proceedings.
