Imran’s protective bail pleas hearing today

PTI chief’s counsel says police cannot arrest a person whose bail is filed, fixed for hearing

LAHORE:

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) legal team on Sunday night succeeded in filing three protective bails – two in both the FIRs lodged at Islamabad’s Ramna police station and one in the Toshakhana case at the Lahore High Court – in a bid to avoid former prime minister Imran Khan from getting arrested.

Earlier in the day, the Chief Justice House and the Lahore High Court staffers denied receiving Imran’s protective bails which the PTI leadership along with its constitutional team tried its best to submit.

At night, petitioner Imran’s counsel Advocate Azhar Siddique confirmed that “they visited the Chief Justice House where the Lahore High Court registrar was present and the numbers on their three petitions had been allotted and fixed for March 6 (today)”.

Counsel Siddique said, "It is settled principle that police cannot arrest a person whose bail is filed and fixed for hearing and if it is done, it falls under contempt of court and is tantamount to making mockery of the judgments of the superior court."

Read: Imran evades arrest in Lahore, demands 'public trial' of Toshakhana case

Earlier, as the legal team approached the Chief Justice House to file the bails, the staffers deployed there said it was not an appropriate venue and they could approach LHC to submit the protective bails.

After that, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry and others along with Advocate Siddique approached the LHC where the police officials denied receiving the bails, claiming that they were not in a position to receive the bails at the LHC gate.

The protective bails were sought in two FIRs registered at the Ramna police station under different sections, including Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, against the vandalism caused at the judicial complex in Islamabad on the arrival of Imran. And the third one was also filed in the Toshakhana case wherein Imran’s non-bailable arrest warrant was issued for March 7, 2023.

One of the cases registered at the Ramna police station on the complaint of Station House Officer (SHO) Rasheed Ahmed stated that a mob under the leadership of PTI Chairman Imran came to the Judicial Complex at G-11/1. The “charged mob” carrying weapons, holding batons, and hurling stones reached at the main gate of the complex and tried to enter forcefully. The Potohar assistant commissioner and other officials asked them to stop at the gate, but they ignored and scuffled with them. The mob threatened the officials and damaged official property. They also broke the main gate, overcame other obstacles and entered the complex’s premises, the FIR mentioned. The charged activists broke the CCTV cameras installed there, tore the cause list and broke furniture.

Also read: Coalition parties criticise Imran for 'avoiding arrest'

The former prime minister, Raja Khurram Nawaz, Murad Saeed, Ali Nawaz, Jamshaid Mughal, Hassan Niazi, Ahmad Khan Niazi, Abdul Qudoos Khan Swati, Amir Kiani, Farrukh Habib, Dr Shahzad Wasim, Raja Basharat, Tahir Sadiq, Wasiq Qayyum, Shibli Faraz, Mian Aslam, Colonel (retd) Asim, Chaudhry Mudasir Riaz, Omer Sultan, Ghulam Sarwar and Hammad Azhar were nominated along with 250 PTI supporters.

The Ramna police registered another case against 20 PTI leaders along with 150 workers. The content of the FIR was almost identical to the previous one. According to it, a mob under the leadership of Imran came to the Islamabad High Court and tried to enter the court premises. They broke the main gate and overcame other obstacles put in place, damaged official property and threatened officials on duty.