Qureshi will continue to follow party line after acquittal: Salman Akram Raja

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Secretary General Salman Akram Raja on Tuesday said that Shah Mahmood Qureshi will continue to follow the instructions of party founder Imran Khan after his release and will not act independently of party policy.

Speaking to the media near Adiala Jail, he said: “Only the founder’s word holds weight within the party.” He declined to speculate on Qureshi’s future role, stating that no decisions could be made without the founder’s direction.

Raja’s comments came after an Anti-Terrorism Court in Lahore issued two separate release warrants for Qureshi, addressed to the Superintendent of Central Jail Kot Lakhpat.

The senior PTI leader had been acquitted on August 11 in connection with cases linked to the May 9 riots, which followed the arrest of Imran Khan.

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Raja further clarified that the PTI’s August 14 programme was not a political protest. “It is a celebration of Pakistan’s independence, where our supporters will also express solidarity with the party and its founder,” he said.

He criticised the current political climate, claiming that Pakistan’s judicial system lacks independence, and that the political freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution are not being upheld.

The PTI leader described the legal proceedings against party workers as unjust, often reliant on repetitive evidence and police testimony.

He also condemned the authorities for blocking access routes and allegedly using force against workers attempting to meet Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi at Adiala Jail.

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“According to the court’s order and the jail manual, family and lawyers were supposed to meet them today, yet we were denied access once again,” Raja said. He added that Imran’s sisters, Aleema and Noreen, were also barred from entering and eventually staged a protest.

He accused law enforcement of deploying containers and using batons to disperse the gathering. “Several workers were injured. It’s dictatorship—and we will stand against it, no matter the consequences,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Aleema and Noreen were denied entry despite attempting to walk to the jail on foot. After over five hours of protest, they were taken into custody along with several workers and moved to Chakri Interchange, where they were released later in the evening.

The arrests sparked brief protests, but all detained workers were released shortly afterward and dispersed peacefully.