Arrest warrants out for top Tehreek-e-Insaf leadership

Imran, Bushra, Gandapur face arrest over D-Chowk protest

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad police obtained on Monday the non-bailable warrants for the arrest of 96 top leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), including party founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi, in cases related to riots and protest in Islamabad's D-Chowk last week.

The PTI founder, who was arrested in six more cases related to the party's protests in September and October, was remanded in judicial custody for 14 days, as an anti-terrorism court (ATC) deferred his indictment in a case of violence on May 9, 2023.

The Kohsar police of Islamabad obtained the warrants against 96 accused nominated in the D-Chowk protest case from ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Sapra. The court issued the non-bailable arrest warrants on the police summons.

The warrants were issued for Imran Khan; Bushra Bibi; Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur; Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Omar Ayub; K-P minister Riaz Khan; National Assembly members Zartaj Gul and Alia Hamza and fugitive party leader Murad Saeed.

Warrants were issued against other leaders, including Sher Afzal Marwat, Khalid Khurshid, Faisal Javed, Abdul Latif, Fatehul Mulk, Ali Nasir, Ali Zaman, Pir Masawar, Khaliqur Rahman, Sohail Afridi, Shahram Tarakai, Mushtaqullah, Rashid Tipu, Zulfi Bukhari, Salman Akram, Rauf Hassan, Khadija Shah, and others.

Meanwhile, another ATC judge, Amjad Ali Shah, deferred the indictment of the accused, including Imran Khan, in a case of attacking the GHQ Gate during the May 9 violence last year, and issued non-bailable arrest warrants for 47 accused, including Gandapur, for not attending the hearing.

The ATC heard the case in Adiala Jail. PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi was produced in the court after being brought from the Kot Lakhpat Jail, Lahore. He was taken back to Lahore after the hearing amid tight security.

During the hearing, the lawyers for Imran challenged the application of Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorist Act (ATA) and, through another application, demanded acquittal of the PTI founder in the case after the three accused retracted their statements.

The lawyers said that terrorism section did not apply to this case, adding that after the deletion of the Section 7 ATA, the case would fall outside the jurisdiction of the ATC, hence, it should the referred to the relevant court.

The court postponed the indictment of the accused till December 5 and issued notices to the prosecution for Tuesday (today) to discuss the applications – one challenging the ATA Section 7 and the other for PTI founder's acquittal.

Show-cause notices were also issued to four officers, including Rawalpindi city police officer (CPO), for not arranging a meeting of the lawyers with the PTI founder despite the court orders. The judge ordered the officials to submit their replies by Tuesday (today).

During the hearing, the court issued non-bailable arrest warrants for 47 accused, who were absent during the hearing. They included K-P Chief Minister Gandapur, besides senior party leaders Raja Basharat, Zartaj Gul, Ijaz Ahmed Chathha and others.

Separately, Judge Amjad Ali Shah sent Imran Khan on judicial remand in seven cases registered in different police stations of Rawalpindi in relation to violent protests in Rawalpindi and Islamabad on September 28 and October 5.

Imran was already on seven-day police remand in a case registered at the New Town police station, while the police arrested him in six more cases. At the end of his seven-day police remand Imran was presented before ATC Judge Amjad Ali Shah on Monday.

During the hearing, the New Town police requested for further remand of the PTI founder. However, the judge turned down the request and sent Imran to jail on a 14-day judicial remand. The court order meant that Imran's jail cell would now come under the jurisdiction of the jail authorities.

The Rawalpindi police arrested the PTI founder in six more cases registered at the Civil Lines, Waris Khan, Taxila, Wah Cantt, RA Bazar and City police stations. The cases had been registered under Anti-Terrorism Act and other legal provisions.

(WITH INPUT FROM QAISER SHIRAZI & IMRAN ASGHAR)