Provocative speech case: SHC grants bail to MQM’s Qamar Mansoor

Accused was booked for listening to Altaf Hussain's speech

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) granted protective bail to Muttahida Qaumi Movement leader Qamar Mansoor in a case relating to party chief Altaf Hussain's speech allegedly instigating the workers against the state.

The order was passed on Monday when Mansoor approached the high court seeking protective bail to avoid his arrest in cases registered under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) at the Brigade police station. Police had registered a case under the 120-A, 120-B, 121, 123, 123-A and 109 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) read with the Sections 7 of the ATA, 1997. According to the FIR, the MQM leaders and workers had gathered for Fateha Khawani of martyred workers of the party at Mazar-e-Quaid on May 12 this year. It alleged that the party had held the programme without obtaining permission from the provincial government and loudspeakers were also used.

According to the content of the FIR, the MQM chief had levelled baseless allegations against the chiefs of the intelligence agencies and instigated the party workers against the state. Police had booked the MQM chief along with other leaders, such as Dr Farooq Sattar, mayor-nominee Wasim Akhtar, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Kanwar Naveed Jamil and others.

The MQM leader apprehended his arrest in connection with the case in which the police have recently obtained physical custody of Akhtar, who was sent to jail following cancellation of his bail in a separate case against Dr Asim Hussain relating to treatment of the terrorists at his private health facility.

Headed by Justice Ahmed Ali M Sheikh, the division bench granted Mansoor protective bail against surety amounting to Rs30,000.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 28^th, 2016.