Justices Aminuddin Khan, Jamal Khan Mandkhel, Atal Minallah and Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi were also present.
 "Jailed Imran Khan cites Kejriwal example in Pakistan Supreme Court")
Justice Minallah said it was unfortunate that Khan was in jail as he was the leader of a major political party with millions of supporters. (Photo: Reuters) Press Trust of India
Jailed former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan has complained in the Supreme Court about the ill-treatment he suffered in prison, citing the case of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal being granted bail to campaign ahead of India's general elections.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman appeared before a five-judge Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa on Thursday in a case related to amendments to the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) and complained about the “victimisation” he has faced since being ousted from power in April 2022.
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Justices Aminuddin Khan, Jamal Khan Mandkhel, Atal Minallah and Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi also sat on the bench.
Judge Minallah said it was unfortunate that Khan had been jailed as he was the leader of a major political party with millions of supporters.
Khan complained of the repression against him, saying Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was released on bail by the Supreme Court ahead of India's general elections for campaigning for his party, but that he faces repression in Pakistan, where undeclared “martial law” is in place.
Khan, 71, filed a criminal complaint against him within five days to prevent him from taking part in the February 8 general election.
Khan also expressed disappointment over the Supreme Court's verdict rejecting the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government's petition seeking live streaming of the incident.
“You wrote [in the judgment] “You said you were trying to score political points in the last hearing, but I don't understand it. What kind of political point-scoring did you resort to,” the PTI founder asked CJP's Isa.
Chief Justice Isa responded by saying judges are not obligated to explain their decisions to anyone. “They can apply for a review,” he said.
He also asked the former chief minister to only speak about matters pending before the court.
The PTI founder lamented the political damage and said the Supreme Court should appoint the chairman of the corruption watchdog National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
“If the opposition and the government cannot reach an agreement on the appointment of NAB chairman, a 'third umpire' will take a decision,” he said, adding that the anti-corruption body works under a 'third umpire'.
Justice Minara told the PTI founder, “Mr Khan, there was no reason to declare the NAB amendments invalid.” Khan said he was currently facing a NAB investigation and called for improvements in the anti-corruption agency.
After Justice Minara cautioned Khan on the issue of the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner, Khan said that restoring the amendment would give him an advantage in the NAB case but would leave the country “bankrupt”.
Chief Justice Isa also barred the PTI founder from citing the Islamabad High Court (IHC) ruling in the crypto case and said an appeal in the case could be filed in the Supreme Court.
“Why did you not oppose the NAB amendment bill in Parliament?” Justice Rizvi asked.
Listing the circumstances, Khan said the government was toppled through a conspiracy and he did not want to respond to a “conspiratorial government” in Parliament.
Khan also asked the court to compare the treatment he received in prison with that given to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
But Justice Mandkhel struck a lighter tone, saying Sharif was not currently in jail and asked: “Should he be sent to jail?” The Chief Justice said the court would arrange for a surprise visit by a judicial officer.
