LAHORE: PTI leaders Yasmin Rashid and Omar Sarfaraz Cheema, who are already imprisoned in multiple cases linked to the May 9 violence, have now also been arrested on a fresh first information report pertaining to attacking the Prime Minister’s House in Lahore.
PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif was premier during the time of the May 9 violence, and his Model Town residence was designated the Prime Minister’s House.
Yasmin and Cheema were presented before an anti-terrorism court in Lahore on Monday and later sent to jail on a 14-day judicial remand.
PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest on May 9 in the Al-Qadir Trust case had resulted in widespread violence and saw important military installations come under attack, on the basis of which the state had launched a severe crackdown against his party.
While the ex-premier was released a few days later (he has since been rearrested in the Toshakhana, cipher and now Al-Qadir Trust cases), scores of PTI workers and almost the entire top-tier leadership were rounded up, with many still facing court proceedings under serious charges.
Earlier this month, the Punjab police launched a fresh crackdown on workers and activists of the PTI and made several arrests from various parts of the country.
The investigation police had sprung into action based on a new list of 884 PTI workers circulated to all the 84 police stations of the city as “new targets”. A majority of these new targets were declared the ‘B team’ of the PTI’s top leadership, including Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed, Mian Aslam Iqbal, Hassaan Niazi, Rashid etc, an official had told media.
Today, the police submitted a supplementary statement in court detailing fresh charges against Yasmin and Cheema.
In the document, the supervision officer of the Prime Minister House in Lahore claimed he was performing his duties on May 9 when a group of PTI supporters — led by Hammad Azhar, Jamshed Iqbal, Musarrat Iqbal, Yasmin, Cheema and others — allegedly attacked the PM House.
He said around 800-900 PTI supporters with clubs and stones tried to break into the gate of the PM House upon being “instigated by the party leaders who were making incendiary speeches” against state institutions.
“[…] They advanced saying they would teach a lesson for Imran Khan’s arrest,” the officer stated, adding that PTI workers also threatened the staff at the PM House and tried to start a fire there.
The statement added that charges under sections 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 291 (continuance of nuisance after injunction to discontinue), 290 (punishment for public nuisance in cases not otherwise provided for), 337-H (punishment for hurt by rash or negligent act), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), 436 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy house, etc), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 109 (punishment of abetment if the Act abetted committed in consequence and where no express provision is made for its punishment), 379 (punishment for theft) and 395 (punishment for dacoity) of the Pakistan Penal Code were invoked against the PTI leaders. Terrorism charges were also lodged against them.
“The accused are nominated through a supplementary statement,” it said, adding that they were summoned on the order of the court from the Kot Lakhpat jail and were now formally arrested.
The police then requested the court for a 30-day physical remand of Cheema and Rashid to collect “corroborative evidence”. However, the request was rejected as the court said “neither they [Yasmin and Cheema] were shown to be armed with any weapon nor any recovery is likely from their possession”.
It subsequently sent the PTI leaders on a 14-day judicial remand and directed the police to present them on Dec 4 along with the case challan.
Last week, while speaking to media persons outside a court in Lahore, Rashid had said she wanted to contest polls against PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and his brother, former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif.
“Take us out if you want to contest the elections,” she had said, adding that contesting elections was her constitutional right. She had also decried the fact that the challans against her had not been completed in the past six months.
