Pakistani high court orders de-sealing of Imran Khan’s party secretariat in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD — The Islamabad High Court on Tuesday ordered authorities here to de-seal the Central Secretariat building of jailed ex-prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, providing a major relief to the beleaguered party.

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) on May 24 raided the office of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Islamabad and sealed the building, alleging that it was built by violating laws.

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The party had challenged the action in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) where Justice Saman Rizvi on Monday reserved judgement after concluding the hearing.

Announcing the verdict on Tuesday, the court ordered the CDA to de-seal the PTI central secretariat.

“CDA may take action strictly in accordance with law in case of any non-conformity or violation of the applicable laws,” IHC’s Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz said in a six-page written order.

The court, in its order, also said that no receipt of such notice or show cause notice is on record. Moreover, the CDA did not issue a prior notice to the PTI before sealing its office.

The order also said that the sealing order was neither addressed nor copied to the petitioner let alone any evidence of service of the same.

The development comes a day after PTI founder Khan was acquitted in three high-profile cases, including the cipher case, in a major relief to the beleaguered former prime minister who was sentenced to 10 years in jail for making public a secret diplomatic communication.

The 71-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician has been in jail since August last year after being convicted in some of the nearly 200 cases slapped on him since his ouster in April 2022.