ATC grants pre-arrest bail to 14 PTI leaders

Arrest warrants were issued under Anti-Terrorism Act for creating chaos during the long march

LAHORE:

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Friday granted pre-arrest bail to fourteen Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) leaders till June 17 in a case related to the party's recent long march.

The relief comes a day after the ATC in Lahore had issued non-bailable arrest warrants for the former ruling party’s leaders at the request of Shahdara police station under charges of damaging public property, torturing police officials, and creating chaos during the party’s long march to Islamabad on May 25.

Upon issuance of warrants, former ministers Shafqat Mahmood, Hammad Azhar, Dr Yasmeen Rashid, Mian Aslam Iqbal, Jamshed Iqbal Cheema, Ijaz Chaudhary, Zubair Niazi, Nadeem Abbas Bara and others reached the court seeking bail.

The arrest warrants were issued for former ministers Shafqat Mahmood, Hammad Azhar and Dr Yasmeen Rashid. Other non-bailable warrants were also issued against PTI leaders Nadeem Bara, Mian Mahmood Al-Rasheed and Ejaz Chaudhry, amongst others.

The Gulberg police and Shahdra police had registered First Information Reports (FIR) against the alleged perpetrators under different sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) including 7-ATA related to punishment for terrorist activities and violence.

The court issued the warrants at the request of the Shahdara police station.

Last month, the Punjab police had registered a total of 42 criminal cases against PTI’s senior leaders and workers for alleged agitation in the aftermath of the long march.

Chaotic Azadi March

On May 25, clashes erupted between the government and the PTI as the police went on the offensive against the latter who defied barricades on their way towards the federal capital to attain “real freedom” on the call of their leader Imran Khan.

Against a hazy backdrop of police-fired tear gas, PTI supporters and activists flexed muscles in an unrelenting stare-down with the security personnel who resorted to firing teargas, baton-charging and detaining the marchers.

On June 9, the Supreme Court was apprised by law enforcement agencies that a “crowd was organised to enter Red Zone under the PTI leadership who had reached Express Chowk with the intent to proceed further towards D-Chowk as per the directions of the party’s highest command”.

Read Marriyum lambastes PTI women lawmakers

On June 1, the apex court sought reports from directors general of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Intelligence Bureau (IB) as well as Islamabad IG police, interior secretary and others over the alleged involvement of PTI leaders in instigating party workers to reach Islamabad's D-Chowk in violation of its May 25 order.

Sources revealed to The Express Tribune that these reports said that party leaders, including Saifullah Niazi and Zartaj Gul, were urging party workers on social media to reach D-Chowk to welcome PTI Chairman Imran Khan. Their videos were also attached with the reports.

The protesters were armed with wooden sticks and they hurled stones at LEAs personnel in order to force their way to the D-Chowk and other places as well.

Moreover, the protesters were also using vehicles to run over the police officials deployed on duty who were only wielding batons to stop the protesters. Heavy machinery was also used to remove containers earlier in the day at various places during the rally.