ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday suspended the sentences of lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha in a case relating to social media posts and ordered their release on bail pending a final decision by the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
A two-member bench comprising Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim heard the couple’s appeals concerning the suspension of their sentences.
The court granted bail against surety bonds of Rs200,000 and directed that the two be released, subject to legal requirements.
During the proceedings, Justice Afghan observed that both appellants were lawyers and also asked their counsel, Faisal Siddiqui, to advise them to observe court decorum.
Siddiqui referred to an earlier Supreme Court order directing the IHC to decide the applications seeking suspension of the sentences expeditiously. He argued that the matter had faced repeated delays before the high court.
Additional Attorney General Rana Asadullah Khan, appearing during the proceedings, submitted that the IHC had not passed an adverse order and referred to the legal procedure governing suspension of sentences.
The Supreme Court subsequently suspended the sentences pending the IHC’s final determination of the matter.
An Islamabad sessions court had sentenced Mazari and Chattha in January to prison terms under different provisions of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) in connection with social media posts.
The prosecution had alleged that the posts violated provisions of PECA. Mazari and Chattha challenged their convictions and sentences before the IHC and have disputed the prosecution’s case and aspects of the trial proceedings.
The Supreme Court’s latest order concerns suspension of the sentences and release on bail; the underlying appeals against conviction remain subject to adjudication by the competent court.
