ISLAMABAD - The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Monday issued notices to Adiala Jail authorities for allegedly failing to arrange a meeting between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan.
A single bench of IHC comprising Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir issued the notices while hearing a contempt of court petition filed by CM Gandapur for not allowing him to meet Imran despite clear judicial directives. Besides issuing the notices, the bench also directed the respondents to submit their response in this matter. During the hearing, Gandapur’s counsel, Advocate Raja Zahoor ul Hassan, told the court that the jail authorities had denied the meeting with PTI founder, in defiance of the IHC’s clear orders issued in September and October 2024. “Despite clear directions from this court, the meeting was not allowed,” the lawyer said. He added, “We visited Adiala Jail last week, but the meeting did not take place.” The counsel contended that the court’s orders from September and October 2024 had been violated by the jail administration. He mentioned the court had directed that the meeting be arranged through a coordinator, but the authorities have failed to comply.
Justice Arbab inquired about the specific orders being referenced and expressed displeasure over the apparent delay, noting that the petitioner was referring to directives from last year. He said that now it is 2025. Do you expect us to take action against the coordinator? For now, we’ll just call for a reply from the jail authorities,” the judge remarked. The bench warned the petitioner’s legal team against possible misrepresentation. He said, “We will call for the record, and if we find any false statements, a fine will be imposed.” When asked if any meeting occurred after the earlier orders, the counsel stated, “We visited Adiala Jail last week, but the meeting was not allowed.” Later, the court deferred hearing of the case and issued notices to the jail administration, seeking a written response.