Govt moves to place top PTI leaders on ECL over May 9 cases

Approves adding PTI leaders to the travel ban list after reviewing recommendations from Punjab Home Department

The federal government has decided to place several Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leaders on the Exit Control List in connection with cases stemming from the May 9 incident, sources told Express News.

According to officials familiar with the development, the government has approved adding a number of senior PTI figures to the travel ban list after reviewing recommendations forwarded by the Punjab Home Department.

The list reportedly includes Imran Khan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Omar Ayub, Fawad Chaudhry, Shibli Faraz, Ali Amin Gandapur, Shehryar Afridi, Usman Dar, Shireen Mazari, Zartaj Gul, Musarrat Cheema, Kanwal Shauzab, Sheikh Rashid, and Major (retd) Tahir Sadiq.

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Sources said Raja Basharat, Wasiq Qayyum Abbasi and several others have also been barred from leaving the country. The ECL Committee has forwarded the recommendations for final approval in the light of the ongoing investigations related to the May 9 unrest.

The decision relates to the violent protests that erupted after the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan from the Islamabad High Court premises on May 9, 2023. The demonstrations were reportedly involved in widespread vandalism and attacks on public and military property, resulting in hundreds of PTI workers and leaders were arrested in related cases.

At least eight people were killed and hundreds injured during the riots, while around 40 public buildings and military installations suffered damage. These included the Lahore Corps Commander’s House (Jinnah House), Askari Tower, General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi, the ISI office in Faisalabad, FC Fort in Chakdara, Radio Pakistan Peshawar, the Swat Motorway Toll Plaza and the Mianwali Air Base.

Several PTI leaders, including Shibli Faraz are already facing cases linked to the unrest, as investigations and proceedings continue.