ISLAMABAD — Lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday, expressing distrust in Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka and seeking the transfer of their controversial tweets case to another court.
The plea contends that the trial is not meeting transparency requirements and requests that the proceedings be moved to a different judicial forum. The case arises from a first information report (FIR) lodged by the National Cybercrime Investigation Agency, accusing the couple of inciting divisions on linguistic grounds through social media posts.
Charges Under Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act
The FIR invokes Sections 9, 10, 11, and 26 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016. During the district and sessions court hearing in Islamabad, Mazari reportedly stated, “Hand me seven years in prison, I am ready [for it],” a remark that drew no immediate response from Judge Majoka.
Source: Pulse Pakistan
Advocate Chattha requested the court to allow them to submit statements and present witnesses under Section 342 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), which grants the accused the right to be examined in their defense. He emphasized that the statement under Section 342 should reflect the accused’s position rather than the state counsel’s submissions.
Court Proceedings and Next Steps
Judge Majoka responded that the petition would be decided after hearing the prosecution’s arguments. The state counsel noted that the issue had not been raised in the previous hearing. Following the submission of final arguments in writing, the judge exited the courtroom amid slogans from lawyers.
The hearing has been adjourned until Monday, December 8, while the petition challenging the trial’s transparency remains under consideration.
