Justice Sardar accepts division bench’s restraining order in contempt case

ISLAMABAD: Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has accepted a division bench’s restraining order in a suo motu notice over contempt of court that he took against a deputy judicial registrar for transferring a case from his court.

Earlier, he had decided to continue the court proceedings by giving a verbal order in open court despite the division bench’s restraining order.

Justice Khan had taken suo motu notice over the transfer of the contempt of court case against the jail superintendent for not allowing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Mashal Yousafzai to meet the PTI founder. Following the case transfer, he initiated contempt of court proceedings against the deputy registrar.

When a division bench of the IHC restrained the single bench from proceeding with contempt of court against the deputy registrar in an intra-court appeal, Justice Khan expressed his anger and said that an intra-court appeal against an interim order was not admissible and the division bench had exceeded its authority by issuing such an order.

He maintained that the contempt of court proceedings would continue in his court.

However, Justice Khan has now issued a written order of the hearing and accepted the restraining order of the division bench.

He wrote that it was appropriate for the dignity of the court that the interim order of the division bench to stay the contempt of court proceedings was accepted for the time being. The court directed that the order be made part of the file before the division bench and adjourned the hearing of the case till June 12.