Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has said that if Imran Khan’s trial is held in a military court in connection with the May 9 riots, it will be an “open trial”.
He said this on Wednesday in response to the demand of ‘open trial’ of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) former intelligence chief Faiz Hamid.
The defense minister made the statement hours after calling for an open trial of former ISI chief General (retd) Faiz Hameed, who was taken into custody by the army on charges of abuse of power and violation of army rules.
In Geo News’ ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Ke Sath’ program, Asif said, “We have no precedent of military trial of a general in an open court in the history of the country.”
He said, “If Imran Khan faces trial in a military court, I can assure you that it will be open to the public and the media, because he is a civilian.”
He further clarified that it is the tradition of the army not to publicly prosecute its employees and officers.
Alleging that the PTI was working in connivance with the former intelligence chief, Asif said the violent protests that broke out on May 9 last year after the arrest of Imran Khan and the attacks on state facilities including military installations were premeditated.
He also alleged that Imran Khan had provided manpower for the May 9 riots and that the former intelligence chief was the “mastermind of the conspiracy”.
Incidentally, the former head of Pakistan’s top intelligence agency ISI, Lieutenant-General Faiz Hamid, was arrested by the country’s military last Monday.
Many people think that Faiz Hamid was arrested because of his closeness with former Prime Minister Imran Khan. He headed the ISI from 2019 to 2021 during Imran’s regime before retiring in December 2022.
