An anti-terrorism court on Thursday sentenced human rights lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, to 10 years in prison each in a case involving the alleged disruption of an international cricket team’s security arrangements in 2024.
Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra announced the verdict at Adiala Jail, where the proceedings were held. Both lawyers were sentenced under three separate legal provisions and were also fined.
The case arose from allegations that the couple removed security barriers along the designated route of an international cricket team and engaged in conduct allegedly intended to provoke public unrest.
The two lawyers were formally indicted on October 7 and pleaded not guilty to the charges. Both had been on bail before Thursday’s verdict.
During the trial, the prosecution presented seven witnesses, who were cross-examined by court-appointed defence counsel Atif Mehmood.
On October 27, Mazari and Chattha recorded their statements under Section 342 of the Criminal Procedure Code, after which the defence’s final arguments concluded.
The couple had also challenged aspects of the proceedings before the Islamabad High Court, including the framing of charges and the application of terrorism-related provisions.
On October 19, the high court declined to suspend the trial. The lawyers subsequently approached the Supreme Court to challenge that decision.
The verdict follows a series of legal proceedings concerning the charges against the couple, with their challenge to the trial having reached the country’s highest court.