Azadi March: Lahore ATC grants interim bail to top PTI leaders

LAHORE: An Anti-Terrorism court (ATC) in Lahore on Friday approved interim bail pleas of 13 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders, including former federal ministers Hammad Azhar, Shafqat Mahmood in different cases pertaining to allegedly damaging state property and violation of Section-144 during the party’s 25 May Islamabad long march, ARY News reported.

All the PTI leaders named in the cases reached out to the court today for interim bails. The court accepted their requests and stopped the police from arresting them till June 17.

Accepting their pleas, the ATC also directed top PTI leadership to submit Rs100,000 surety bond each.

IHC BARS POLICE FROM ARRESTING PTI LEADERS

Talking to media outside court after securing interim bail, PTI senior leader Hammad Azhar accused PML-N leadership of turning the country into a “police fascist state”.

“Maryam Nawaz issued directives from PM House to include sections pertaining to terrorism against PTI Punjab leadership,” he claimed and further slammed the incumbent for running the country’s economy.

The ATC on Friday issued non-bailable arrest warrants for several PTI leaders including former provincial minister Murad Raas, Mehmood ur Rasheed, Mian Aslam Iqbal, Jamsheed Chemma, Zubair Niazi, Aijaz Chaudhry, Yasmin Rashid and others.

ATC ISSUES NON-BAILABLE ARREST WARRANTS FOR SENIOR PTI LEADERS

ATC Judge Abhar Gul Khan issued the arrest warrants for the PTI leaders after police approached the court and sought permission to arrest PTI activists.

It is to be noted that several PTI leaders including former prime minister Imran Khan, Asad Umar, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Fawad Chaudhry and others have been booked by police in various FIRs related to Azadi March.