IHC reserves verdict on contempt case against Islamabad DC; refuses to accept apologies.

ISLAMABAD – On Wednesday, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) reserved its ruling in the contempt of court case against Islamabad Deputy Commissioner (DC) Irfan Nawaz Memon and other top officers.

The reserved decision in the contempt case will be revealed on March 1. Justice Babar Sattar of the IHC heard the contempt case filed against Islamabad DC.

The court rejected DC Islamabad’s unequivocal apologies and forbade him from flying overseas. The court has directed DC Islamabad to respond to the showcase notice by Monday.

DC Islamabad failed to attend in court for the contempt of court case yesterday (Tuesday), stating that he was scheduled to offer pilgrimage. DC Islamabad, Irfan Nawaz, also claimed to have been before the court in up to 18 hearings in this matter.

The court questioned how the DC could be absent from the case hearing while the contempt of court hearing was still proceeding. The court also denied another plea filed by Islamabad DC to shift the case to a different bench.

Justice Babar Sattar commented that the DC had issued 69 Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) orders over a 970-day period, which violated his jurisdiction.

DC Islamabad’s lawyer argued that during the May 9 disturbances, the District Magistrate issued detention and arrest warrants for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shehryar Afridi.

The attorney further stated that there was no negative purpose behind issuing the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) and requested the court to assess the full scenario. The second MPO was issued by DC Rawalpindi, and he violated contempt of court, thus he should be punished, the barrister claimed.

“On August 5, Shehryar Afridi’s party leader was detained. The scenario on May 9 is also in front of everyone,” he added, adding that the Intelligence Bureau had alerted the capital’s administration of the deteriorating law and order situation and agitation.

He said that the district intelligence committee, which includes officials from all sensitive agencies, was concerned about assaults on government structures, including GHQ Chowk near F-9 Park in Islamabad.

Raja Rizwan Abbasi, lawyer for DC Islamabad, said that Shehryar Afridi used aggressive and hate-filled statements to disrupt law and order. A transcript of Shehryar Afridi’s aggressive statements was also presented to the court during the hearing.

He said that DC has no intention of undermining appropriate legal procedures or violating the court’s authority, and urged the court to dismiss the contempt of court action against DC Islamabad Irfan Nawaz.

The court also heard the case of Islamabad Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Operations Jamil Zafar, who was charged with abusing his jurisdiction by issuing orders under Section 3 of the MPO. SSP Jamil Zafar has requested forgiveness from the court, and the court has stated that the ruling would be issued next week.

A day earlier (Tuesday), the court issued an arrest warrant for DC Islamabad Irfan Nawaz Memon. The court further directed that the name of DC Islamabad be included on the Exit Control List (ECL).