The High Court on Sunday upheld the Criminal Court’s terrorism conviction of religiously conservative Adhaalath Party’s leader Sheikh Imran Abdullah.
The Criminal Court had sentenced Sheikh Imran to 12 years of imprisonment on terrorism charges for inciting violence during a major opposition protest held in May 2015.
Sheikh Imran had appealed the Criminal Court’s decision – however, his appeal trial was in hiatus since April 2016, until it was supposed to resume in February 2017. However, the court abruptly cancelled the hearing they scheduled in February, before resuming his trial again in late March.
In the last hearing that was held, the high court’s panel had heard closing arguments from both sides where the defence had reiterated how the prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove that the defendant had asked protesters to enter the restricted zone.
The prosecution, meanwhile, insisted that the defendant must bear responsibility for the violent clashes, which had left two police officers and several protesters injured.
Sheikh Imran is currently under house arrest.
