Contempt of court case in IHC: Imran again refrains from tendering unconditional apology

ISLAMABAD: PTI Chairman Imran Khan, for the third time, avoided tendering an unconditional apology in a contempt case as he submitted his response to the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

The former prime minister is facing contempt charges for his controversial remarks about Additional District and Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry during a rally in Islamabad on August 20.

In the last hearing on September 22, Khan surprisingly apologised before the IHC and assured the court that he would not issue such a statement in future — leading the court to delay his indictment.

The PTI chairman appeared on Friday before the court of Judge Zeba Chaudhry and told the court staff that he wanted to apologise to the judge, however, she was on leave.

But in the latest response, Khan, although mentioning that he “might have crossed a red line while making a public speech”, fell short of apologising for his remarks.

“The deponent (Imran Khan) never intended to threaten the judge and that there was no intention behind the statement to take any action other than legal was also not available as he was out of the country, he added.

Additional Sessions Judge Adnan Khan then deferred the cross-examination by Khwaja Asif’s lawyers on Imran Khan’s statement till October 22.

The judge accepted Imran Khan’s adjournment application with Rs5,000 fine.

During the last hearing, the court had also imposed a fine of Rs5,000 on the chairman PTI for seeking an adjournment in the hearing due to his engagement in the party’s ongoing rallies.