PTI’s Sanam Javed rearrested after release from prison

Sanam was apprehended as soon as she stepped out of Kot Lakhpat Jail

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Sanam Javed, accused of involvement in arson attack on the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) office on May 9, 2023, was released from prison on Wednesday only to be apprehended once again, Express News reported.

According to details, the Anti-Terrorism Court in Lahore had granted bail to Sanam in connection with the case of setting fire to the PML-N office. The bail was approved by judge Arshad Javed after a surety bond was submitted.

Following the court's orders, Sanam was released from Kot Lakhpat Jail. However, as soon as she stepped out of the jail premises, she was taken into custody again by the police.

Reports suggest that Sanam has been moved to a police station following her rearrest.

Sanam was also among the PTI workers who were rearrested in September after being released from Kot Lakhpat Jail.

Apart from Sanam, Afshan Tariq, Ashmia Shujah, and Shah Bano Gorchani were also apprehended.

Read more: Four PTI female workers rearrested after release

They were transported in a prison van and subsequently transferred to a women's police station. While en route, Sanam Javed exclaimed, "again arrest," confirming her detention.

PTI and its workers found themselves in hot water following the events of May 9, when in an unprecedented show of vandalism, protesters allegedly belonging to the former ruling party, vandalised public and state properties and even attacked the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi and Lahore’s Jinnah House, where the city’s corps commander was residing.

The attacks occurred hours after the paramilitary Rangers arrested the PTI chief Imran Khan in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case – later retitled as National Crime Agency £190 million scandal – on the orders of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), from the Islamabad High Court premises.

The army termed the events of May 9 a “dark chapter” and announced its intent to try the protesters under relevant laws, including two military laws — the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act.

However, a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court unanimously declared the trial of civilians in military courts as null and void and ordered that the 103 accused in cases relating to the violence on May 9 and 10, 2023 be tried under the ordinary criminal laws.