LAHORE: An anti-corruption court in Lahore on Tuesday approved the post-arrest bail application of Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, the president of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party in a case pertaining to illegal recruitment in the Punjab Assembly.
Earlier this month, the former chief minister of Punjab was apprehended by the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) in Gujranwala. The allegations against him involve accepting bribes amounting to Rs15 million during his tenure as the speaker of the provincial assembly. These bribes were purportedly in exchange for making out-of-merit appointments on BPS-17 positions within the assembly.
Following his arrest, Elahi was placed in judicial remand for a period of 14 days. Prior to the court’s decision on his post-arrest bail petition, both the state prosecutor and Elahi’s lawyer, Rana Intizar, presented their arguments.
On Tuesday, Special Judge Ali Raza Awan announced the court’s verdict, granting the former Chief Minister post-arrest bail against surety bonds worth Rs1 million.
During the hearing, Special Prosecutor Abdul Samad contended that Elahi was directly involved in the case and opposed his request for bail. Conversely, Intizar maintained that his client had no involvement in the alleged misconduct.
Elahi, currently held at the district jail in Lahore, is yet to be released.
