LAHORE: Another division bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday recused itself from hearing the appeal filed by Barrister Hassaan Niazi — nephew of PTI founder Imran Khan — challenging his trial and conviction by a military court in the May 9 Jinnah House attack case.
The two-judge bench comprising Justice Sultan Tanvir Ahmad and Justice Malik Awais Khalid took up the matter as representatives of the federal and provincial governments and the appellant appeared.
However, Justice Ahmad observed that he had previously heard the case as a single bench and therefore deemed it inappropriate to preside over the matter again. The bench then referred the appeal to the LHC chief justice with a request to constitute another bench for further proceedings.
This is the second LHC bench to withdraw from the case. Earlier, on Nov 6, a division bench consisting of Justice Farooq Haider and Justice Tariq Nadeem had also declined to hear the appeal.
Appeal challenges handover to military authorities
Niazi’s appeal maintains that after his arrest in a May 9 case, he was never produced before a civilian court. Instead, Sarwar Road police allegedly handed him over directly to military authorities without securing any judicial order, making the handover unlawful.
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The petition seeks to invalidate the commanding officer’s notification dated Aug 17, 2023, which authorised his custody by the military. It further calls for setting aside his transfer to military custody and nullifying all subsequent proceedings conducted by the military court.
Niazi has requested the court to order his release or direct authorities to produce him before an anti-terrorism court (ATC) with appropriate jurisdiction.
Mr Niazi asked the court to declare null and void the commanding officer’s notification dated Aug 17, 2023, authorising his custody by the military.https://t.co/EPcxnm9WIk
— Dawn.com (@dawn_com) December 2, 2025
Background
Barrister Hassaan Niazi was sentenced to 10 years in prison in December 2023 for his alleged involvement in the attack on Jinnah House during the May 9 protests. His conviction was handed down by a military court under the Pakistan Army Act following the government’s decision to try certain May 9 suspects in military jurisdiction.
With two division benches already recusing themselves, the case now awaits reassignment by the LHC chief justice.
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