The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday Imran Khan to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for 15 days in 14 cases registered against him in connection with his party’s May 25 long march.
The former premier filed the plea today through his counsel advocate Babar Awan ahead of another long march he plans to lead in the coming days, which PHC Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan heard.
He had appeared in court to file his plea in a personal capacity.
Read more: Imran Khan to announce next long march after SC verdict
The judge approved bail till June 25 against surety bonds worth Rs50,000. It subsequently forwarded the orders to the additional sessions judge of Islamabad and instructed Khan to appear before the sessions court before June 25.
Khan’s petition
According to Dawn, the PTI chairman, in his petition, contended that the party’s march on May 25 was a peaceful demonstration.
“The present illegitimate imported government used unreasonable and unlawful tactics along-with state machinery against the peaceful empty-handed protesters throughout the city,” it said.
Imran contended that the Supreme Court (SC) had also taken notice of the “excessive use of force” by the government, and instructed the authorities to immediately release all the arrested party members.
“However, the police and state in derogation and utter violation of the decision of the Supreme Court did not act.”
It further stated that the FIRs were registered in “pitched enmity” of the government/state against PTI.
FIRs against Imran Khan
On May 26, a first information report (FIR) was registered at 1:50 am at the Kohsar police station at the complaint of Sub-Inspector (SI) Asif Raza under Sections 109 (abetment), 148 (rioting armed with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 186 (obstructing public service), 188 (disobedience), 353 (assault on public servant), 427 (causing damage) and 435 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
The second FIR was registered on the same day at 3:20 am on the complaint of SI Ghulam Sarwar under the same sections as the prior FIR.
On the May 28, a Dawn report revealed that 11 more cases were registered against the PTI leadership, including Imran, and other PTI activists under different sections of the PPC by the Loi Bher, Secretariat police, Aabapra police, Golra police, Bhara Kahu police, Tarnol police, and Koral police among others.
Reportedly, former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser and former minister Hammad Azhar also applied for protective bails.
Former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi also sought bail in six cases registered by the Punjab police.
Read more: PML-N govt wanted to thwart Azadi March: Imran Khan
Meanwhile, Islamabad High Court (IHC) granted PTI leader Umar Amin Gandapur protective bail until June 13. An FIR was registered against him in Mianwali.
Likewise, an interim bail has been granted to former interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed by District and Sessions Judge Kamran Basharat Mufti against Rs10,000 surety bonds till June 13.
The IHC also barred police and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) from arresting former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser today in cases regarding harming government properties during PTI’s Azadi March. He had approached the IHC after multiple FIRs were registered against him.