Islamabad’s Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Saturday issued a contempt of court show-cause notice to the superintendent of Adiala jail concerning the bail applications of lawyer and human rights activist Imaan Mazari and her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha.
ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Supra presided over the hearing, which took place a day after he directed the jail authorities to present Mazari and Chattha through a video link in a case registered at the Secretariat Police Station. However, despite the court’s explicit order, the couple was not produced via video link during the proceedings.
Moreover, the jail officials failed to submit the signed powers of attorney (vakalatnamas) for both lawyers, and no representative from the jail appeared in court. Mazari’s mother, Shireen Mazari, along with numerous other lawyers, attended the hearing.
When questioned, court staff informed Judge Supra that the jail authorities attributed the failure to an internet connectivity problem. The judge noted that there had been only one internet issue reported in a case and expressed concern over the repeated claims of poor connectivity by the jail staff.
Judge Supra revealed that he had previously ordered PTCL and NTC to dispatch technical experts to the jail, and additional experts were also instructed to come from Haripur to resolve the issue.
During the session, the judge inquired whether the deputy superintendent had collected the vakalatnamas from the sessions court as required. Lawyer Riasat Ali responded that he was unaware if the jail authorities had retrieved the documents after submission at the sessions court for delivery to the jail.
Emphasizing the importance of the matter, the judge stated that receiving powers of attorney is a fundamental right of the accused. He warned that the jail superintendent should not place the courts or himself in a difficult position.
Consequently, the court issued a contempt of court show-cause notice to the Adiala jail superintendent, questioning why he should not face a six-month imprisonment sentence for his actions.
Following the issuance of the notice, Judge Supra adjourned the hearing until Tuesday.
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