ATC reserves verdict on Imran's nephew's bail plea

Court reserved its ruling after concluding arguments, with decision expected later

The verdict on the post-arrest bail plea of Shahrez Khan, nephew of ousted premier Imran Khan, has been reserved in the May 9 riots case.

An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Lahore, presided over by Judge Manzar Ali Gill, reserved the decision on Wednesday after hearing arguments from both sides.

Read: Lahore ATC sends Imran's nephew on eight-day physical remand in May 9 case

Shahrez was arrested on August 21 from the residence of his mother, Aleema Khan, with the PTI alleging that household staff were assaulted and family members were harassed during the raid. His brother, Shershah Khan, was detained the following day.

Defence counsel Rana Mudassar argued that Shahrez had been falsely implicated, claiming no evidence placed him at the scene.

He said geofencing records and investigation reports did not mention his name and submitted sworn statements confirming Shahrez was in Chitral between May 6 and 12.

He also noted that more than 500 co-accused in the case had already been granted bail.

Read more: ATC grants Aleema Khan exemption in protest case, hearing adjourned

The prosecution opposed the petition, insisting that social media photos linked Shahrez to the protests, though none were recovered from his personal accounts.

Shahrez’s parents, Aleema Khan and Sohail Amir, attended the hearing. The court reserved its ruling after concluding the arguments, with the decision expected later.

Earlier, Shahrez had been sent to jail on judicial remand in the Jinnah House attack case after the ATC dismissed the police request for further physical remand. The court ordered that proceedings continue under the anti-terrorism trial.

Also read: Shahrez Khan sent to jail on judicial remand in May 9 case

Separately, ATC Lahore remanded his brother, Shershah Khan, to jail for 14 days, rejecting the investigation officer’s request for a 30-day extension of his physical remand.