Achakzai gets breather as arrest warrant suspended

PkMAP chief gets temporary relief as arrest warrant suspended until May 31

QUETTA:

A judicial magistrate suspended the arrest warrant against Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) chairman Mahmood Khan Achakzai, providing temporary relief until the next hearing.

The local court's decision to suspend the arrest warrant came in response to an application filed by President Quetta Bar Association, Qari Rehmatullah, along with other lawyers.

Presiding over the proceedings, Judge Kamran Baloch granted the suspension of the arrest warrant and adjourned the hearing to May 31.

Achakzai's defence counsel, Advocate Qari Rehmatullah, argued that the charges against his client were motivated by malice. He emphasized that Achakzai was not even present in Quetta during the raid mentioned in the FIR.

Rehmatullah further elaborated, suggesting the possibility that individuals close to Achakzai's residence might have utilised the land in question, given Achakzai's frequent absence from Quetta due to his political engagements in Islamabad.

The suspension of the arrest warrant provides a temporary reprieve for Achakzai as legal proceedings continue. The next hearing is scheduled to take place on May 31.

"The decision to suspend the arrest warrant was made during a court session, wherein Magistrate Nine deemed it appropriate to withhold the warrant until further proceedings," Naseebullah Kasi, one of the lawyers challenging Achakzai's arrest warrants, informed Express Tribune.

Read also: Arrest warrants issued for Achakzai

This move effectively postpones any potential legal action against Achakzai until the upcoming hearing. "The court is expected to declare this case null and void very soon," Mr Kasi claimed.

Achakzai, a candidate in the presidential election, found himself entangled in legal troubles when he was charged under sections 448 (house trespass) and 447 (criminal trespass) in a First Information Report (FIR) lodged at Gwalmandi police station on March 11.

Allegations surfaced from officials of the local administration, Quetta, and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), accusing Achakzai of unlawfully occupying government land and obstructing official duties. The incident occurred when his security guard reportedly resisted a team of officials who were conducting a raid on a plot of land opposite Achakzai’s residence.

Subsequently, the guard was apprehended, and it was discovered that he was in possession of a firearm without a license, as per details outlined in the FIR.

The issuance of the warrant came after Achakzai, the chief of PkMAP, failed to make an appearance in court on April 22 for a hearing regarding the FIR.

The judicial magistrate, while issuing the arrest warrant, had then instructed the police to present Achakzai before the court on April 27.