PTI’s Asad sent to Adiala jail on judicial remand

Qaiser's counsel challenges 'haste' in arrest, contends action reeks of 'political vendetta'

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Asad Qaiser was sent on judicial remand to Adiala jail on Saturday a day after he was taken into custody in an alleged corruption case.

Qaiser was brought before a local court president by Judicial Magistrate Qudratullah by police.

The court was informed that Qaiser was arrested in a corruption case in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, following a request for his apprehension by the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE).

Representing Qaiser, lawyer Shoaib Shaheen challenged the arrest procedure of the capital police, citing it as outside their jurisdiction and termed it as being in “undue haste”.

He suggested that the arrest of the PTI leader was conspicuously timed after the election date announcement, saying the action was motivated by political vendetta.

The counsel also expressed his plans to file for protective bail on behalf of his client.

However, the court ruled against the possibility of a protective bail at the current stage. Meanwhile, Qaiser's judicial remand was accepted, tasking the K-P police with concluding the legal formalities within a week.

Qaiser was apprehended from his home in Banigala by a joint task force of Anti-Corruption Establishment K-P and Islamabad police. Following his arrest, Qaiser was relocated to an undisclosed location.

The PTI stalwart was arrested in a raid by Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) K-P and Islamabad police at his residence in Banigala. After his arrest, he was shifted to an undisclosed location.

PTI, in a statement released by its Central Media Department, strongly denounced the arrest of Qaisar, describing it as a "shameful" act that coincided with the announcement of the election date.

The party argued that Qaisar's arrest raised concerns about the transparency of the electoral process leading up to the elections.