ISLAMABAD:
The Federal Constitutional Court on Wednesday restrained the Islamabad High Court (IHC) from initiating contempt of court proceedings against Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and federal ministers in the Dr Aafia Siddiqui case.
The court also adjourned hearings in the related case of Dr Fauzia Siddiqui, sister of Dr Aafia, and issued notices to all parties involved.
On July 21, the IHC initiated contempt proceedings against Prime Minister Shehbaz and his entire cabinet for ignoring its order to provide reasons for not attending a US court hearing the case of jailed neuroscientist Dr Aafia Siddiqui.
A three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Aminuddin Khan, heard appeals filed by the federal government challenging a High Court order dated May 16, 2025. The government sought permission to amend its petition and sought that the earlier order be declared null and void.
The Islamabad High Court had earlier asked the prime minister and cabinet to clarify why they had not supported legal efforts on behalf of Dr Aafia in the United States.
Read: IHC issues contempt notices to Shehbaz, cabinet in Dr Aafia case
The federal government argued that the proposed amendments would exceed judicial authority and violate the finality of decided cases. He added that reopening a long-concluded matter would contravene established legal principles.
Officials emphasized that the case is closely related to foreign policy and international law. The amended petition asked that the government be constitutionally obliged to take steps for the release and repatriation of Dr Siddiqui.
According to the government, in October 2024, the Prime Minister sent a letter to the President of the United States requesting clemency for Dr Aafia. A high-level delegation was also sent to the United States to explore prisoner transfer agreements. However, US authorities did not accept any such agreement, the federal government said.
Dr. Aafia, a Pakistani neuroscientist currently imprisoned in the United States, was sentenced to 86 years in prison for attempted murder, a sentence that significantly exceeds the legal maximum of 10 years for the crime in the United States.
She has served 16 years behind bars and has been separated from her children for more than two decades.
Dr Aafia was reportedly intercepted in Karachi in March 2003 while traveling with her three children and subsequently disappeared for five years. It was later revealed in 2008 that she had been imprisoned in Afghanistan before being transferred to the United States.
While two of his children, Ahmed and Maryam, were released in 2008 and 2010 respectively, the whereabouts of his son Sulaiman remains unknown.
