ISLAMABAD, Oct 3: District and sessions judge (DSJ) of Islamabad on Wednesday stopped proceedings on the bail petition of Imam Khalid Jadoon, the prayer leader of Mehra Jaffer mosque and directed his counsel to seek clarification of Islamabad High Court (IHC) order, in which it stayed the trial proceedings of the blasphemy case.

DSJ West, Raja Jawwad Abbas Hassan resumed hearing of the bail petition of Imam Jadoon.

The judge observed that since the IHC has issued a restraining order and has ordered for maintaining status quo in this case, therefore, he could not proceed with the bail application of Imam Jadoon.

“I can pass an order or interpret the restraining order of a civil judge but interpreting the order of superior courts is beyond my jurisdiction”, said Judge Hassan.

The petitioner, therefore, should seek clarification from the same court, where the restraining order was issued and in case the IHC clarifies that the restraining order was not affecting the bail petition in the same matter, then I am ready to proceed with this matter, he added and adjourned the hearing till October 11.

Syed Wajid Ali Gilani, counsel for the petitioner Imam Jadoon told Dawn that he is filing a petition in IHC for the clarification of the restraining order.

“The court had stayed the trial of Christian girl and the matter regarding bail was not restrained”, he added.

During the hearing of the bail petition of Imam Jadoon, his counsel advocate Gilani told the court that a restraining order issued for the trial of an accused never affected the matters related to bail applications of other accused persons.

He requested the court to pass an appropriate order on the bail application because the matter regarding liberty of a citizen cannot be delayed on the basis of assumptions.

It may be pertinent to mention that IHC chief Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman on September 28, while hearing the petition filed to quash the FIR registered against minor Christian girl, restrained the trial court from proceeding in the blasphemy case, the court on October 1, extended the stay order till October 17.