IHC bars Imran Khan’s arrest in cases across Pakistan till Monday

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday barred authorities from arresting Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan in all cases, even those are undisclosed, registered across the country until Monday (May 15), ARY News reported.

According to details, Imran Khan – who is still present inside the IHC – decided not to leave the court premises until written orders are issued in a bid to evade his arrest.

Islamabad High Court (ICH) Chief Justice (CJ) Aamer Farooq constituted a two-member divisional bench – Justice Ejaz Ishaq Khan and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri – to hear Khan’s bail pleas in a number of cases.

Meanwhile, the court also granted protective bail to PTI chief in three terrorism cases registered against him in Lahore and stopped authorities from arresting him till May 17 in any case registered in Islamabad after May 9.

Justice Jahangiri also approved Imran’s protective bail in a case pertaining to the death of Zille Shah — a PTI worker who was killed during a party rally in Lahore earlier this year — for 10 days against surety bonds worth Rs50,000.

During the hearing, the former premier pointed out that Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah had warned to arrest him again, saying that there was no rule of law enforced in the country currently.

Khan’s lawyer – Salman Safdar – pleaded to the court to grant his client protection in all the cases filed against him since May 9. “Government machinery is being misused,” the lawyer added.

The judge presiding over the hearing said the incumbent government had a case registered against former interior minister Sheikh Rashid — a resident of Rawalpindi — in North Waziristan’s Baka Khel.

However, he also noted that the PTI government had registered similar cases against Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Javed Latif and others.

Then, the court granted bail to Khan and issued orders that he should not be arrested in the “cases that he has no knowledge of” till Monday morning.

Al-Qadir Trust case

Earlier in the day, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) granted protective bail to former prime minister Imran Khan in the Al-Qadir Trust case, a day after the Supreme Court ruled his arrest “unlawful”.

A two-member special division bench comprising Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice Saman Imtiaz, who presided over the hearing, approved Imran Khan’s bail in Al-Qadir case for two weeks.

The IHC also issued notice to National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and directed the anti-graft watchdog to submit reply in the next hearing.

As the hearing resumed today, Imran’s counsel Haris contended before the court that the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) action against the former PM was illegal.

“PTI came to know through the media that the inquiry has been converted into an investigation,” Haris maintained and added that the manner in which the inquiry was converted into an investigation, the aim was to “arrest Imran immediately”.

Haris further informed the court that a notice was sent to him on March 2 to which he replied,” he said, adding that in his reply, he informed NAB that the notice was not sent as per the requirements of the NAB Ordinance.

After hearing arguments, the IHC then accepted Imran’s bail plea for two-weeks and also instructed the NAB prosecutor general and Imran’s lawyers to be prepared at the next hearing.

SC terms arrest ‘unlawful’

A day earlier, the Supreme Court of Pakistan termed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chief Imran Khan’s arrest “illegal” minutes after PTI chief reached Supreme Court after a three-member bench ordered the authorities to produce him before the court.

The three-member bench comprising Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Athar Minallah along with the CJP, while hearing the former prime minister’s plea against his arrest in the Al-Qadir Trust case, termed Imran Khan’s arrest from IHC premises “illegal” and ordered his immediate release.

“Your arrest was invalid, so the whole process needs to be backtracked,” Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial told Khan at a hearing in the capital Islamabad on Thursday.

The apex court ordered Imran Khan to stay at the Police Lines Guest House but not as a prisoner and directed the Islamabad police chief to ensure the former PM’s security. He was directed to appear in Islamabad High Court Friday morning.

Since being ousted from office last April, Khan has waged a tempestuous campaign for snap elections and fired unprecedented criticism at Pakistan’s government and powerful military who he blames for pulling him from power.

Imran Khan’s arrest

Former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan was arrested by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the Al-Qadir Trust case on Tuesday.

The PTI chief was taken into custody by Rangers personnel, who were acting on the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) warrant, from the premises of Islamabad High Court where the former premier had gone to seek bail in multiple cases registered against him.

Later on, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) termed the arrest of the former premier and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman ‘legal.’

Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Justice Aamer Farooq heard the petition challenging PTI chief’s arrest. The court also issued contempt court notices to Interior Secretary and IG Islamabad.