ATC approves bail for 250 PTI protesters, rejects bail to 150

Court denies bail to 120 but grants it to 10 in Secretariat police cases.

An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Islamabad on Friday granted bail to 250 individuals in connection with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protests held on November 26.

The bail was granted in 13 cases filed across 10 police jurisdictions in the federal capital. The court ordered those granted bail to submit surety bonds of Rs 5,000 each.

However, the court rejected the bail applications of 150 other accused individuals involved in the same protests.

Around 18 detainees linked to the Bani Gala case were granted post-arrest bail. In a case registered at Kohsar Police Station (case number 1033), the court denied bail to all accused, while 43 individuals in another related case were granted bail.

In other cases, nine individuals in the Shahzad Town police case were granted bail, while one plea was rejected. At Noon Police Station, 17 individuals secured bail, but one bail application was denied.

The Aabpara police case saw 70 individuals granted bail, with 25 applications rejected. In the Margalla police station case, 13 individuals received bail, while two bail pleas were dismissed.

Meanwhile, the court denied bail to 120 individuals linked to two Secretariat police cases, but granted bail to 10 others.

Bail applications from other police stations, including I-9, Shams Colony, and Sihala, largely saw approval, leading to a mixed outcome for PTI members involved in the protests.

PTI presents two key demands in second round of talks

The second round of talks between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the government have kicked off, with the opposition party presenting two of its major demands ie the formation of a judicial commission to investigate the events of May 9 and November 26, as well as the release of all political prisoners, including the party's founding chairman Imran Khan.

A PTI delegation arrived at the Parliament House for talks, which included prominent party figures such as Omar Ayub, Raja Nasser Abbas, Asad Qaiser, Sahibzada Hamid Raza, and Salman Akram Raja, Express News reported.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur also joined the delegation shortly after. The negotiation committee was chaired by Speaker of the National Assembly, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq.

Other key participants include Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders Irfan Siddiqui, Rana Sanaullah, and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leaders Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Naveed Qamar, along with Aleem Khan, Farooq Sattar, Ejaz-ul-Haq, and Khalid Magsi.

During the meeting, PTI representatives reiterated their demand for the formation of a judicial commission to probe the events surrounding the May 9 protests and the November 26 sit-ins.

The party also called for the immediate release of Imran Khan and all other detained PTI members and workers.

Asad Qaiser, while speaking to the media, acknowledged that the negotiation process could be prolonged and noted that progress in the first two meetings had been limited. "We will listen to the government and present our case," he said.