{"id":80679,"date":"2024-05-29T20:53:34","date_gmt":"2024-05-29T20:53:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/iddat-case-complainant-khawar-maneka-assaulted-outside-islamabad-court\/"},"modified":"2024-05-29T20:53:34","modified_gmt":"2024-05-29T20:53:34","slug":"iddat-case-complainant-khawar-maneka-assaulted-outside-islamabad-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/iddat-case-complainant-khawar-maneka-assaulted-outside-islamabad-court\/","title":{"rendered":"Iddat case complainant Khawar Maneka assaulted outside Islamabad court"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div dir=\"auto\">\n<p>An Islamabad district and sessions court on Wednesday did not announce its already reserved verdict in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810889\">iddat case<\/a> against former premier Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi while the complainant was assaulted outside the court.<\/p>\n<p>The court had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1835330\">reserved<\/a> the verdict last week on appeals filed by the PTI founder and his wife against their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810889\">conviction<\/a> in the iddat case \u2014 which was the third and last in a series of verdicts announced just a few days before the general elections.<\/p>\n<p>While the verdict was expected to be pronounced today, District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand sought transfer of the case and would not be announcing the judgment.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this month, complainant Khawar Fareed Man\u00adeka, Bushra Bibi\u2019s former husband, had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1830687#:~:text=by%20May%202.-,Iddat%20case,-Meanwhile%2C%20Khawar%20Farid\">requested<\/a> Arjumand to rec\u00aduse himself from hearing the appeals, accusing him of being biased and sympathetic towards the PTI.<\/p>\n<p>A video broadcast on television showed Maneka, dressed in a white shalwar kameez, walking outside court as men, who appeared to be lawyers, shoved him. He can be seen falling as people pull the attackers off of him.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Arjumand had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1818190#:~:text=to%20March%205.-,Iddat%20case,-District%20and%20Sessions\">taken up<\/a> the appeals on February 29. During the previous hearing, defence counsel Usman Gill and the prosecutor had concluded their arguments in the case.<\/p>\n<p>As Raja Rizwan Abbasi, lead counsel for Man\u00adeka, had failed to appear, the court had ordered his associate to contact and tell him he may conclude his arguments in person or via video link. However, when Abbasi failed to appear, the court reserved its decision.<\/p>\n<p>On February 3 \u2014 days before the general elections \u2014 an Islamabad court had sentenced Imran and Bushra Bibi to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810889\">seven years<\/a> in jail in the case, which pertains to their marriage during the latter\u2019s iddat period.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media  sm:w-1\/2  w-full  media--right  media--embed  media--uneven\">\n<p>    <iframe class=\"nk-iframe\" onload=\"setInterval(()=&gt;{try{this.style.height=this.contentWindow.document.body.scrollHeight+'px';}catch{}}, 100)\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" style=\"height:250px;position:relative\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/card\/1814514\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The verdict had come in the same week Imran and Bushra Bibi had been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810025\">handed 14-year sentences<\/a> in the Toshakhana case, and Imran and his foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had received a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1809793\/imran-khan-shah-mahmood-qureshi-sentenced-to-10-years-in-jail-in-cipher-case\">10-year sentence<\/a> in the cipher case.<\/p>\n<p>The judgment was widely criticised by civil society, women activists and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810921\/iddat-case-lawyers-civil-society-denounce-intellectual-bankruptcy-following-imran-bushras-conviction\">lawyers<\/a> for being a \u201cblow to women\u2019s right to dignity and privacy\u201d. Activists had <a href=\"https:\/\/images.dawn.com\/news\/1192239\">protested<\/a> in Islamabad against the verdict while a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1814514\">Karachi demonstration<\/a> against the \u201cstate\u2019s intrusion into people\u2019s private lives\u201d had also denounced it.<\/p>\n<p>Imran Khan has said he would <a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link--external\" href=\"https:\/\/bhttps:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1834227\">file references<\/a> for misconduct against Senior Civil Judge Qudratullah, who convicted him in the iddat case, as well as District and Sessions Judge Abual Hasnat Mohammad Zulqarnain who heard the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1809793\/imran-khan-shah-mahmood-qureshi-sentenced-to-10-years-in-jail-in-cipher-case\">cipher case<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In a letter to the Islamabad High Court registrar today, judge Arjumand said the appeals were \u201cpending adjudication\u201d while Maneka had \u201cshown his mistrust on me today in open court\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The judge noted that while Maneka\u2019s similar request earlier had been dismissed, he considered it would \u201cnot be appropriate to decide the <em>lis<\/em> when specific objection has been raised on the presiding officer\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs arguments at length were heard in the matter, therefore, it is humbly submitted to transfer the two appeals\u201d under Section 528 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to any other court of competent jurisdiction, the letter added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is further submitted that the complainant and his counsel always tried to frustrate and delay the proceedings on one pretext or other,\u201d Arjumand highlighted, adding that a \u201ctime frame may be fixed for disposal of appeals\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Addressing the media outside the court \u2014 flanked by PTI leaders Shibli Faraz, Ali Muhammad Khan and Omar Ayub \u2014 PTI MNA Gohar Ali Khan \u201ccondemned\u201d the judge\u2019s decision to seek transfer of the case.<\/p>\n<p>He noted that Arjumand wrote a letter to the IHC, saying it would now decide whether he would hear the appeals or another judge. \u201cWe condemn this. We say that this is not justice but injustice. This is against fundamental rights [and] a murder of justice,\u201d the PTI leader said.<\/p>\n<p>Gohar recalled he urged the court to suspend the conviction in the \u201cbogus case of political victimisation\u201d. He said the party had \u201cgreat hopes\u201d from the judiciary.<\/p>\n<p>Faraz, opposition leader in the Senate, said Maneka made disgraceful statements, which he said the judge should have stopped him from uttering. \u201cThe kind of conversation he was making and the kind of things he was saying about Khan <em>sahib<\/em> were extremely unethical,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<h2><a id=\"pti-alleges-pressure-threats-to-judge-to-not-announce-verdict\" href=\"#pti-alleges-pressure-threats-to-judge-to-not-announce-verdict\" class=\"heading-permalink\" aria-hidden=\"true\" title=\"Permalink\"\/>PTI alleges \u2018pressure, threats\u2019 to judge to not announce verdict.<\/h2>\n<p>Meanwhile, PTI Central Information Secretary Raoof Hasan alleged while addressing a press conference at the National Press Club that the announcement of the reserved verdict was put off because \u201cenough pressure\u201d was applied on the judge behind closed doors.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRather than giving the judgement today, he asked the other party to re-narrate their case and when an extension was asked by Maneka, it was granted immediately,\u201d Hasan said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think that even any blind person can see the kind of pressure that is being applied on the judges,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Hasan alleged that the judge must have been \u201cthreatened and intimidated\u201d into not giving the judgement today. \u201cConsequently, the case was handed over to a different judge who might schedule a hearing after the summer vacations,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>The PTI spokesperson said that given that the cases against Imran were \u201cCrashing\u201d, the strategy of the \u201cpower-wielders\u201d was to delay the judgment in the listed cases.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cToday\u2019s case is a typical example of the fact that the establishment and the power wielders want to try and \u2026 ensure that Imran cannot come out of jail,\u201d he said, adding that this was only possible if the judgements were delayed in Imran\u2019s cases.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are watching the murder of justice. We are watching the establishment get weaker,\u201d Hasan said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI always say that if there is a problem due to which this country could not prosper, it is the establishment\u2019s direct intervention,\u201d  he added.<\/p>\n<h2><a id=\"the-hearing\" href=\"#the-hearing\" class=\"heading-permalink\" aria-hidden=\"true\" title=\"Permalink\"\/>The hearing<\/h2>\n<p>At the outset of the hearing, Abbasi\u2019s assistant lawyer Aimal Wali appeared before the court and informed the court that Maneka\u2019s lead counsel would arrive by 10:30am.<\/p>\n<p>The judge then accepted his request to give a break in the hearing till then.<\/p>\n<p>When the hearing resumed, judge Arjumand noted that Abbasi had yet to present his arguments on \u201ctwo points\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Here, Maneka said he wished to make a few submissions before the court: \u201cMy lawyers cannot tell what I have endured; I will speak myself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The judge responded, \u201cLet the lawyer conclude his arguments first, then we\u2019ll give you a chance [to speak].\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bushra Bibi\u2019s counsel Usman Gill then urged the court to issue contempt notices to Maneka for \u201caffecting the court proceedings\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Maneka repeatedly sought \u201c10 minutes\u201d of speaking time from the court, saying he belonged to a village. He claimed that forged divorce papers of his daughter were circulated on social media.<\/p>\n<p>At this point, heated verbal exchanges were seen between the PTI lawyers and Maneka, at which judge Arjumand asked the lawyers, \u201cDo you want to create a scene?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maneka alleged that Imran was being treated with leniency as he was a former prime minister. \u201cListen to the poor as well,\u201d he said. He argued that his children were not aware of the first nikah between Imran and Bushra.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI told the children that the iddat [period] is ending on February 14, after which the [news of] nikah will be disclosed. After that, the nikah was disclosed on February 18,\u201d Bushra\u2019s ex-husband said.<\/p>\n<p>Here, the judge stopped Maneka from using inappropriate language for Imran. The complainant then lamented, \u201cThe PTI\u2019s army came and kept hurling abuses at me. Advocate Usman Riaz Gill told me in court that he would throw me out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maneka criticised Imran for being \u201cwilling to swear on the Holy Quran on minor affairs\u201d, adding, \u201cI did not even know what he kept doing in my house.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He went on to claim he had messages from former PTI leader Jehangir Tareen stating that \u201ceverything will end now\u201d. Asserting that he could show all messages in the court, he reiterated he was unaware of the alleged \u201csecret nikah\u201d between Imran and Bushra Bibi.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was deceived. Are God\u2019s servants like the PTI founder?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At this point, when PTI lawyers used foul language, Maneka responded: \u201cStay within your limits. You are the same.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was mistaken to think that the PTI founder is coming for religious purposes. When he performed the nikah, then I found out that the PT founder has deceived me on the name of God,\u201d Maneka said.<\/p>\n<p>At Maneka further assailing the former premier, PTI lawyers and supporters present there chanted slogans, leading to the judge ordering Maneka to focus back on his arguments.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe PTI founder deceived [Bushra\u2019s] children and did nothing except create incitement,\u201d Maneka said. Judge Arjumand then remarked, \u201cI have written your points. Tell me a few more points.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At this, Maneka continued his criticism of Imran for \u201cdestroying the society and turning sisters and daughters against their parents\u201d. \u201cWhen I told my children that I have been divorced, they cried a lot. My mother passed away due to the grief,\u201d he added while visibly emotional.<\/p>\n<p>Maneka then said multiple people contacted him for their tasks, including now PTI leader Parvez Elahi who he said had a task relating to his son. He further said a daughter of his had been divorced, claiming that Bushra Bibi had disassociated herself with her children.<\/p>\n<p>Maneka\u2019s lawyer Wali then requested the judge that the appeal be transferred to another court, to which Arjumand replied that a similar request of lack of confidence had already been dismissed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI do not want you to decide the verdict,\u201d Maneka said while addressing Arjumand, who then asked the reason behind it. \u201cI don\u2019t know. The PTI founder did the same in previous courts,\u201d Maneka replied.<\/p>\n<p>The judge again asked the complainant if there was a \u201csolid reason\u201d but Maneka only replied that Imran \u201cplayed with people\u2019s minds on social media\u201d. \u201cNot every person sees social media [posts],\u201d the judge noted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne judge or the other has to decide in the end,\u201d Arjumand remarked, directing Maneka to consult his counsel and then inform the court about what request he wished to make.<\/p>\n<p>At this point, Bushra\u2019s counsel Usman Gill said Maneka had \u201conly made emotional statements, no legal arguments\u201d. Maneka then told the PTI lawyers to \u201cfear God\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>PTI lawyer Naeem Haider Panjutha then alleged that Maneka \u201cwas planted\u201d and that the court \u201cunderstood what he wanted\u201d. Judge Arjumand then observed that Maneka was repeatedly expressing a lack of confidence.<\/p>\n<p>Here, Gohar highlighted that the arguments had been concluded, urging the court to pronounce the verdict. \u201cWe have full trust in the court. Whatever the verdict will be, we will accept it,\u201d lawyer Gill said.<\/p>\n<p>Advocate Panjutha alleged that Maneka was \u201ckidnapped after which the complaint in the iddat case was filed.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Arjumand remarked, \u201cNow, whatever the verdict would be, it will be controversial.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The PTI workers then raised slogans of \u201cshame, shame\u201d as the judge returned to his chambers.<\/p>\n<h2><a id=\"the-case\" href=\"#the-case\" class=\"heading-permalink\" aria-hidden=\"true\" title=\"Permalink\"\/>The case<\/h2>\n<p>According to the court\u2019s written order, a copy of which is available with <em>Dawn.com<\/em>, Imran and Bushra Bibi were found guilty under Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) Section 496 (marriage ceremony fraudulently gone through without lawful marriage).<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media  sm:w-1\/2  w-full  media--right  media--embed  media--uneven\">\n<p>    <iframe class=\"nk-iframe\" onload=\"setInterval(()=&gt;{try{this.style.height=this.contentWindow.document.body.scrollHeight+'px';}catch{}}, 100)\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" style=\"height:250px;position:relative\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/card\/1810921\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>According to legal precedence, Section 496 is considered an offence completely distinct from zina, an offence that ensues from not having a contracted marriage.<\/p>\n<p>The order further said that the two would be imprisoned for a further four months if they failed to pay the fines.<\/p>\n<p>As per Pakistan\u2019s superior courts, formalising nikah during iddat does not entail annulment of marriage as that requires a separate declaration; it will be treated as irregular but not void, in terms of legal fiction.<\/p>\n<p>The charges against the couple had been framed by Judge Qudratullah on a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1792642\">complaint<\/a> filed in November by Maneka under PPC Sections 34 (common intention), 496 and 496-B (fornication).<\/p>\n<p>However, the 496-B charge had been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810227\/another-day-another-sentence-for-imran\">dropped<\/a> by the IHC later.<\/p>\n<p>Days after Imran and Bushra had been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1806310\/imran-bushra-bibi-indicted-in-iddat-case\">indicted<\/a> in the case, the IHC on January 19 had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1807211\">stopped the proceedings<\/a> against the couple and restrained the prosecution from producing the evidence in the case.<\/p>\n<p>The IHC then <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810227\/another-day-another-sentence-for-imran\">refused<\/a> to quash proceedings in the case, saying the charge had already been framed by the trial court. It, however, gave the couple some relief by dropping the \u201cillegitimate relations\u201d charge of section 496-B of the PPC, which had not been framed by the trial court.<\/p>\n<p>IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq had disposed of Bushra Bibi\u2019s petition, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1810227\/another-day-another-sentence-for-imran#:~:text=Bushra%20Bibi%20and-,observed,-that%20the%20%E2%80%9Creq%C2%ADu%C2%AD%C2%ADired\">observing<\/a> that the \u201creq\u00adu\u00ad\u00adired procedure was not ado\u00adpted\u201d for invoking sec\u00adtion 496-B.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An Islamabad district and sessions court on Wednesday did not announce its already reserved verdict in the iddat case against former premier Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi while the complainant was assaulted outside the court. The court had reserved the verdict last week on appeals filed by the PTI founder and his wife [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":80680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i.dawn.com\/large\/2024\/05\/291205569dcf09a.png?r=122831","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-80679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pakistan"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80679"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80679\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80680"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}