ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Friday stayed proceedings in the Rs10 billion defamation case filed by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif against Imran Khan while issuing a notice to the Prime Minister and seeking his response.

A three member bench headed by Justice Ayesha Malik heard the matter and issued the stay order. During the hearing Justice Malik referred to her dissenting note in which she argued that the trial court wrongly ended Imran Khan’s right to defense despite acknowledging that he was injured and unable to appear in court.

Imran Khan’s lawyer Ali Zafar explained that Khan was shot in the leg and could not participate yet the trial court had begun recording evidence and ended his defense. Justice Hashim Kakr remarked on the Rs10 billion claim while Justice Malik questioned how the trial court could deny the founder his defense after acknowledging his injury.

The case dates back to 2017 when Shahbaz Sharif filed the defamation suit alleging false claims by Khan regarding a Rs10 billion offer linked to the Panama Papers case. The Lahore Sessions Court is currently conducting the trial, and prior appeals by Khan to the Supreme Court had been dismissed, with Justice Malik dissenting in favor of preserving the right to defense.