Jail Bharo Tehreek: Asad Umar's wife denies reports about release request

KARACHI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Asad Umar’s wife has rejected reports of filing a petition, seeking release of her husband who volunteered for arrest two days ago under the party’s “Jail Bharo Tehreek” on the call of PTI chief Imran Khan, ARY News reported on Friday.

In a statement, the former minister’s wife – Fatima Umar – filed a petition in the Lahore High Court (LHC) for her husband’s recovery from “illegal and unlawful” custody of the Lahore police.

Deputy Commissioner, CCPO Lahore, IG Punjab and Jail Superintendent were made respondents in the petition.

Fatima Umar noted said that Asad Umar was engaged in the struggle along with Imran Khan for the ‘real freedom of the nation’, adding that reports about the request for his bail or release were being wrongly attributed.

The petition said that Umar was in the “illegal and improper custody” of the police and was not being provided with food and necessary medicine by the superintendent.

The petitioner, in the petition, termed deputy commissioner’s detention orders of Asad Umar ‘illegal’, urging the court to ‘nullify’ the orders and direct the authorities to present the PTI leader in the court.

It is pertinent to mention here that the PTI members — including Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Asad Umar, Azam Swati, and other senior leaders — were taken into police custody on Wednesday on the day the Jail Bharo Tehreek began.

The ‘court arrest’ drive was launched in protest over “violations of the fundamental rights”, “abuse of the Constitution”, “unprecedented inflation” and “economic meltdown”.

Earlier in the day, the Lahore High Court (LHC) scolded Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for ‘overburdening’ the judiciary after voluntarily surrendering for the arrest.

Justice Shahram Sarwar passes these remarks while hearing the pleas of Ijaz Chaudhry, Zain Qureshi and others for the recovery of party leaders that voluntarily surrendered themselves to the law enforcers under their movement.

At the outset of the hearing, the LHC judge asked what do you want from us?, when PTI leaders voluntarily surrendered themselves for arrests.

Police were not arresting PTI leaders and workers but they forced themselves into prison van – the comment cracked a laugh in the courtroom.

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First, PTI leaders surrendered voluntarily for the arrest and now you are here to put pressure on the court,” Justice Shahram Sarwar remarked.