Aleema Khan laments decline in suo motu actions by CJPs

ISLAMABAD: Aleema Khanum, sister of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, spoke to the media outside the Supreme Court on Thursday, addressing ongoing legal matters, ARY News reported.

Aleema Khan said, “In the past, Chief Justices used to take suo motu notice of any injustice. The judiciary is the last resort; there is no other door to turn to.”

Commenting on the Toshakhana case, she stated, “The case is still pending. Today, I went to the High Court along with my lawyers.”

Regarding the Al-Qadir Trust case, she added, “The Chief Justice has scheduled the hearing for September 25.”

She further mentioned that for the Toshakhana-II case, they plan to approach the High Court tomorrow to request an early hearing.

Aleema Khan, the sister of PTI founder Imran Khan, arrived at the Supreme Court today to hand a letter to Chief Justice Yahya Afridi but was prevented from accessing the Chief Justice’s chambers by court security.

Aleema Khan, accompanied by other sisters of Imran Khan and members of the PTI legal team, told reporters she had come to deliver a letter written by the PTI founder to the Chief Justice. The delegation was stopped by Supreme Court police before they could proceed to the Chief Justice’s chambers.

Court security officials said no one could be allowed forward without prior permission from the Registrar’s Office and noted that proceedings in the Chief Justice’s court had already finished, so entry was not permitted.

Aleema Khanum maintained that peaceful protest and petitioning public institutions are constitutional rights and cautioned against any attempt to curtail those rights. She added that denying citizens the ability to make representations to the judiciary undermines democratic norms.

The incident drew attention to the tension between petitioners seeking direct access to judicial officials and the security and procedural rules that govern entry to judicial chambers. The PTI legal team remained at the Supreme Court following the incident.

Further developments are awaited regarding whether the letter will be formally submitted through the court’s registrar or delivered by other authorised channels.

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