On Monday, an anti-terrorism court in Islamabad ordered jail authorities to allow lawyers to meet human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha in prison. The couple had raised concerns about their access to legal counsel and the fairness of proceedings since they were indicted on October 7 for allegedly disrupting a security route and inciting public unrest. During Monday's hearing, Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra acknowledged the need for fair trial procedures and directed the prosecution to ensure that Mazari and Chattha could consult with their lawyers privately without surveillance cameras in the meeting area.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-12,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
On Monday, an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad ordered jail authorities to permit lawyers representing human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha to meet them in prison. The couple was indicted on October 7 for allegedly disrupting the security route of an international cricket team and inciting public unrest. On October 10, the ATC dismissed their plea to drop terrorism charges, prompting a legal challenge before the Islamabad High Court.
During Monday’s hearing, Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra granted permission for Advocates Riasat Ali Azad, Zainab Janjua, and Aimal Khan to visit Mazari and Chattha in jail. Imaan's mother, former human rights minister Dr Shireen Mazari, attended the proceedings with two of the defense lawyers while the couple participated via video link. The defense team requested an adjournment because their petition challenging the ATC’s October 10 ruling is pending before the Islamabad High Court. If the high court accepts this petition, it would halt further proceedings in the ATC case.
Written for “Imaan Hadi Legal Meeting Request” on 2026-10-12,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Monday directed jail authorities to allow lawyers representing human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha, to meet them in prison as the couple raised concerns over their access to their legal counsel and the fairness of proceedings in a case related to the removal of security barriers.
asserted
couple → direct → barriers
The couple was indicted in the case on Oct 7.
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couple → indict → Oct
The case pertains to the alleged disruption of the security route of an international cricket team and incitement to public unrest.
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case → pertain → unrest
On Oct 10, the ATC had disposed of the couple’s plea seeking to drop the terrorism charges.
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ATC → dispose → charges
ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra, who presided over the hearing on Monday, ordered that Advocates Riasat Ali Azad, Zainab Janjua and Aimal Khan be allowed to meet the accused in jail.
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Azad → preside → jail
Imaan’s mother, former human rights minister Dr Shireen Mazari, appeared before the court along with Advocates Azad and Khan, while the couple attended the proceedings via video link.
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couple → appear → link
The defence sought an adjournment, informing the court that the Oct 10 order was also being challenged before the Islamabad High Court.
“If your petition is accepted by the high court, the proceedings in this court will come to an end,” the judge remarked.
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judge → seek → end
Azad emphasised the need for a fair trial, saying the defence did not know what had happened or where the alleged incident had taken place.
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incident → emphasise → place
The judge also questioned the defence about whether proceedings conducted before the accused joined via video link should be treated as a trial.
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accused → question → trial
Azad replied in the affirmative.
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Azad → reply → affirmative
Justice Sipra recalled that at the previous hearing, Advocate Janjua had argued that proceedings could not be considered a trial because Imaan and Hadi had not been present via video link.
uncertain
Imaan → recall → link
During the hearing, the couple had complained about facing difficulty in communicating via video link, with Imaan and Hadi saying their voices were breaking up.
“If we cannot meet then, how are we supposed to proceed with the case?” Advocate Azad asked.
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Azad → complain → case
The judge observed that the anti-terrorism law required the trial to proceed on a daily basis and asked the prosecution how many witnesses remained to be examined.
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witnesses → observe → prosecution
The prosecutor informed the court that nine witnesses had yet to be produced before the court.
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witnesses → inform → court
The judge then directed the prosecution to ensure that the accused were granted access to their lawyers.
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accused → direct → lawyers
Meanwhile, Hadi objected to the manner in which the proceedings were being conducted and questioned why him and Imaan were not being presented before the court in person.
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him → object → person
“This goes against the principles of a fair trial,” he said, adding that they had been in jail for eight months and were struggling to pursue their case.
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they → go → case
He also raised concerns over the privacy of consultations with their lawyers, saying cameras had been installed in the designated meeting area at the jail, making confidential discussions difficult.
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discussions → raise → jail
“You are the ones who must decide our fate; please summon us to court,” Hadi told the judge, adding that the court had to determine whether he and Imaan were terrorists.
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he → decide → judge
The court adjourned further proceedings until Oct 14.
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court → adjourn → Oct
In a related development, the court took exception to an apparent contradiction in reports submitted by Adiala jail authorities concerning Imaan’s production through a video link in separate cases.
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court → take → cases
On Oct 10, the jail authorities produced Imaan before the ATC through a video link in the case pertaining to the removal of security barriers.
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authorities → produce → barriers
However, in a report submitted in the case involving former MNA Ali Wazir, the same authorities stated that she could not be produced through a video link on that date because of a lack of internet connectivity.
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she → submit → connectivity
Judge Sipra expressed astonishment at the discrepancy and questioned the preparation of the reports.
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Sipra → express → reports
“Do you not read what you write in your reports?
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you → read → reports
Do you just copy-paste?” the judge asked.
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judge → copy → ?
The judge noted that Imaan had appeared through a video link in one case on Oct 10, while the jail authorities had cited the absence of internet service to explain her non-production in another case on the same day.
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authorities → note → day
The court issued a fresh show-cause notice to the jail authorities over the matter and directed them to produce Imaan through a video link in the case on Oct 19.
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court → issue → Oct
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