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       ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have filed applications in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), seeking an immediate stay on the trial proceedings in a Toshakhana case, arguing the hearings are moving at an unfair speed while their related appeals are stalled.

       In applications, filed under Section 561-A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the couple sought an urgent hearing for their pending criminal revision petitions. The filings highlight a critical disparity between the pace of the trial court and the high court.

       The petitioners argued that their pleas against the dismissal of acquittal pleas have been pending since January 2024, while the trial court is proceeding with “unprecedented and extraordinary speed,” conducting hearings on a strict day-to-day basis.

       This “breakneck pace” of trial, presided over by the Special Judge Central in Islamabad, is severely prejudicial to their rights to a fair trial and due process, they contend.

       They expressed a “grave and well-founded apprehension” that the trial court may conclude the case even before the IHC hears their challenge, which they said would render their legal right to revision “infructuous, nugatory, and a mere academic exercise.”

       Published in Dawn, September 13th, 2025