- IHC grants PTI chairman protective bail till May 3 in Mutiny Case
- Arrested of peaceful PTI workers flayed as brazen display of ‘state oppression’
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday granted PTI Chairman Imran Khan protective bail till May 3 in a case filed over charges of inciting mutiny against him at the Ramna police station of the capital.
In the information report (FIR), Imran has been accused of “spreading hatred between the institutions and the public” and for “trying to cause unforgivable damage to the institutions and their top officers”.
Subsequently, the PTI chief was granted bail in the case until April 26 by the Lahore High Court.
PTI Chairman @ImranKhanPTI inside Islamabad High Court #عمران_خان_ہماری_ریڈ_لائن pic.twitter.com/lLdbA9Izr0
— PTI (@PTIofficial) April 28, 2023
IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, who presided over the hearing, approved Imran’s bail against the submission of surety bonds worth Rs100,000.
PTI Chairman @ImranKhanPTI at IHC earlier today: pic.twitter.com/Ydm1HUGKFb
— PTI (@PTIofficial) April 28, 2023
Earlier this month, Manzoor Ahmed Khan, a magistrate, filed a first information report (FIR) at Islamabad’s Ramna police station against Imran for “spreading hatred between the institutions and the public” and for “trying to cause unforgivable damage to the institutions and their top officers”.
Earlier Friday, the PTI chief had filed a plea through his counsels seeking protective bail in the case. The IHC registrar’s office had raised a few objections to the plea, one of which pertained to the lack of biometric verification. However, the PTI legal team later addressed and resolved these objections after which it was taken up for hearing.
The Lahore High Court (LHC) on April 14 had granted to the former PM protective bail in the case until April 26. Subsequently, Imran had approached the IHC requesting that the mutiny case against him be quashed.
During today’s hearing, Imran’s legal team comprising Barrister Salman Safdar, Faisal Chaudhry, Ali Bukhari, and others, appeared in court.
ضمانت منظوری کے بعد عمران خان عدالت سے روانہ #عمران_خان_ہماری_ریڈ_لائن pic.twitter.com/731z05lZUd
— PTI (@PTIofficial) April 28, 2023
At the outset of the hearing, Safdar informed the court that the issue regarding the biometric verification had been resolved. However, Advocate General Islamabad Jahangir Jadoon objected to Imran’s plea being heard the same day it had been filed. Jadoon remarked others should receive the same treatment if they filed similar pleas.
However, the court emphasised that the petitioner, being a resident of Pakistan, had the right to be granted bail. The advocate general acknowledged the court’s stance, but suggested that the petitioner be directed to appear before the relevant court after being granted bail.
ہمارے وزیراعظم عمران خان اسلام آباد پہنچ گئے ٹول پلازہ پر عوام کا جمہ غفیر
بڑی تعداد میں کارکنان کا استقبالیہ پھولوں کی پتیوں کہ ساتھ #ڈٹ_کے_کھڑاہےاب_کپتان#عمران_خان_ہماری_ریڈ_لائن#ActiveInsafians#NationStandswithCJP#WeStandwithConstitution pic.twitter.com/oXrW2sDYzy
— Fauzia Siddiqui (@fozisidd) April 28, 2023
At the AG’s request, the court instructed the PTI chief to become a part of the investigation and granted him bail till May 3.
The petition, filed by the PTI chief’s legal team, contended that the incumbent government had lodged the case against Imran for political reasons and to tarnish his reputation.
عمران خان اسلام آباد ہائیکورٹ پہنچ گئے۔۔ #عمران_خان_ہماری_ریڈ_لائن
pic.twitter.com/hSmxa0cNPn— PTI (@PTIofficial) April 28, 2023
According to the petition, the government has failed to find an iota of corruption against Imran and therefore, it is now dragging him into frivolous cases to blackmail him. The petition urged the court to quash the FIR.
‘Hold talks only if govt ready to dissolve assemblies forthwith’
During an informal conversation with journalists inside the courtroom, Imran Khan stated that he had requested members of the PTI negotiating team – Fawad Chaudhry and Shah Mehmood Qureshi to initiate talks with the government only if the ruling party was prepared to immediately dissolve the assemblies and hold elections.
He added, “There’s no need to proceed if they insist on holding polls in September or October,” with both Chaudhry and Qureshi present during the conversation.
It is important to note that ex-ministers Qureshi and Chaudhry are part of a three-member team that the PTI has formed to hold talks with the government for “meaningful dialogue” on holding elections within the ambit of the Constitution and as per the top court’s orders.
Arrested of peaceful workers flayed
Meanwhile, PTI Imran alleged that Islamabad police had taken PTI workers, present outside the court, into custody while they were “peacefully sitting in their vehicles”.
Our workers were sitting in their vehicles peacefully when ICT police in brazen display of State oppression pulled them out & took them away. This is why they want elections to be delayed because they feel they can break PTI by then, through fear of jail & harassment. Won't work. pic.twitter.com/KJicVW2jVw
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 28, 2023
Sharing a video of the alleged incident on his twitter handle, the PTI chief said: “Our workers were sitting in their vehicles peacefully when ICT police, in brazen display of state oppression, pulled them out and took them away. This is why they want elections to be delayed because they feel they can break PTI by then, through fear of jail and harassment. Won’t work.”
Imran’s convoy meets accident
Earlier on the way to Islamabad for the court hearing, four people were injured when a car in PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s convoy met an accident on Motorway near the capital on Friday.
The accident took place in Sukheki as the car driver was trying to film the convoy heading to Islamabad and showing it live on social media.
However, the driver lost control of the car which resulted in minor injuries to four persons while the vehicle was completely destroyed.
