Leaders from the Islamabad Bar Council, Islamabad High Court Bar Association, and Islamabad District Bar Association have urged the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to promptly act on the Supreme Court’s directive regarding the suspension of sentences for lawyers Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha. This appeal came a day before the scheduled hearing in the contentious tweets case involving the couple.

At a joint press conference, Advocate Aleem Abbasi, a member of the Islamabad Bar Council, emphasized that both Mazari and Chattha are practicing members of the bar whose trial was expedited without due process. He highlighted that appeals against their convictions have been submitted to the IHC, but alleged that the hearings have been delayed through procedural tactics.

Abbasi further noted that the matter was escalated to the Supreme Court, which instructed the IHC to resolve the sentence-suspension applications within a two-week timeframe. However, he pointed out that four months have elapsed without implementation of this order.

Stressing the importance of fair trial rights, Abbasi stated that regardless of the charges, every accused or convicted individual deserves justice as guaranteed by the Constitution. He called for an immediate ruling on the case, warning that continued inaction could lead to systemic disorder.

He also criticized the impact of a recent constitutional amendment on the judiciary, recalling the legal community’s opposition and their limited means of protest.

In a significant development, the case against Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha originated from a complaint filed by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) in Islamabad on August 12, 2025, under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA). The FIR accused Imaan of spreading narratives aligned with hostile terrorist organizations, while Hadi was charged for sharing some of her posts.

The allegations included blaming security forces for enforced disappearances in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan and portraying the military as ineffective against banned groups such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

On January 24, 2026, an Islamabad sessions court sentenced the couple to a combined total of 17 years imprisonment on multiple PECA charges. These convictions sparked criticism from parts of the legal fraternity and United Nations experts. The couple subsequently challenged their sentences before the IHC on February 7.

On July 25, the IHC admitted their petitions seeking suspension of sentences after dismissing a prosecution objection that the pleas were premature. The next hearing in the Supreme Court is scheduled for Thursday, with bar leaders demanding an immediate decision to uphold judicial fairness and prevent further erosion of trust in the legal system.