Pakistan lawyers Imaan Mazari, Hadi Chattha seek SC hearing in PECA conviction case
Human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha on Thursday, 30 April filed a petition in Pakistan's Supreme Court, seeking an early hearing of their appeals against their conviction under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) in a social media posts case, according to local media reports.
What the Petition Requests
In the application filed before the Supreme Court, the couple has requested the grant of leave to appeal against the Islamabad High Court (IHC) order issued on 17 February. The IHC had in February admitted the appeal against the trial court's judgement and issued notices to respondents on the application for suspension of sentence, but had stopped short of actually suspending it.
The petitioners have specifically requested that their appeals be fixed for hearing preferably in the week starting 4 February. They have also sought suspension of the sentence awarded to them through the impugned judgement until the disposal of the criminal appeal pending before the IHC.
Why They Approached the Supreme Court
The application stated that the petitioners had no other option but to approach the Supreme Court, as the IHC had not fixed any date for the hearing of their appeals. The petition invoked the Supreme Court's own policy that criminal matters — particularly those relating to bail or suspension of sentence — should be prioritised.
The application further stated that Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha are young lawyers who have remained in prison for around 100 days in a case where, according to their counsel, the conviction was the result of a
