Imran’s nephew handed over to Quetta police

ISLAMABAD:

A district and sessions court in Islamabad on Friday approved a one-day transit remand of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan’s nephew and focal person Hassaan Khan Niazi to the Quetta police.

After the transit remand was approved, Quetta police took Niazi to Balochistan.

Sources said that a case had been registered against Hassan Niazi at the Airport police station in Quetta for inciting violence and interfering in government affairs.

Quetta police reached the district and session courts in Islamabad to arrest Hassan Niazi. Judicial Magistrate Abbas Shah issued a warrant for Hassan Niazi's arrest. Later, Hassan Niazi was presented in court. Quetta police requested a one-day physical remand of Hassan Niazi, which the judicial magistrate accepted. After which, he was handed over to Quetta police.

The court told the Quetta police's investigation officer to present Hassan Niazi in the relevant court on March 25.

On March 18, a case was filed against Hassan Niazi at the Quetta Airport police station on charges of inciting violence and interfering with police affairs on a complaint of Inspector Abdulllah of the Airport police station in Quetta.

The case stated that while on patrol, the sub-inspector got the information that 150 people had blocked Chaman Road in Quetta, including Inayatullah Kakar and others.

The demonstrators blocked the road for one hour despite police’s attempt to disperse them. It should be noted that Hassan Niazi was not nominated in the FIR by the Quetta police.

Quetta police took custody of Hassan Khan Niazi and left for Balochistan after the judicial magistrate in Islamabad approved a one-day transit remand.

Niazi was taken into custody by police outside the Judicial Complex in Islamabad on Monday for his involvement in attacking law enforcement personnel and causing chaos in the federal capital. The arrest is part of an ongoing crackdown on PTI activists and supporters who police claim assaulted law enforcers while they were performing their duties in Islamabad.

On Thursday, the district and sessions court in Islamabad sent Hassan Niazi to jail on a 14-day judicial remand in a case related to clashes between PTI workers and Islamabad police outside the Federal Judicial Complex during the court appearance of the former prime minister in the Toshakhana case.

The local court had rejected the police’s plea seeking further physical remand of Hassan Niazi as the police failed to recover anything from the suspect during the investigation after taking him into custody.

Hassan Niazi was arrested in a separate case as he was leaving the Federal Judicial Complex after obtaining pre-arrest bail in three cases.

On Thursday, Hassan Niazi was produced in the court of Duty Magistrate Mureed Abbas in District and Sessions Court Islamabad after the expiry of his two-day physical remand.

The investigating officer pleaded to the court to grant a further five-day physical remand of Hassan Niazi. The investigating officer said that the co-accused has been identified while Hasan Niazi's arms and vehicle were to be recovered.

The PTI lawyers said that more than 72 hours had passed since his arrest but the police could not recover the (said) weapon.

The PTI counsel raised the question that if the arms and vehicle were not in possession of the police, then why have they detained Hassan Niazi?

Lawyer Faisal Chaudhry said that the police failed to trace the vehicle and its owner in the last 72 hours. He said that Hassan Niazi is a professional lawyer and he obtained three bails on the day of his arrest.

After hearing the arguments of the parties, Duty Magistrate Mureed Abbas reserved the verdict on the plea for the extension in the physical remand of Hassan Niazi. Later, the court announced the reserved verdict, rejecting the police plea for further physical remand of Hassan Niazi. The court issued an order to send him to jail on a 14-day judicial remand.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 8^th, 2023.