Imran gets bail in four terrorism-related cases

ISLAMABAD – Special Anti-Terrorism Court Islamabad on Tuesday granted bail to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman, Imran Khan, in four terrorism-related cases registered against him.

The ATC judge, Shahrukh Arjumand, accepted the PTI chief’s bail plea after hearing arguments from both sides.

The PTI Chairman, Imran Khan, appeared before the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Islamabad fifth time in the four cases registered against him on the charges of attacking Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Asmatullah Junejo, the Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) building and the Parliament during the 2014 sit-in.

The PTI leader is one of the accused in the four cases related to the 2014 attack that took place during the party’s sit-in in the federal capital.

Khan had moved the court in December 2017, for the case to be transferred to a civil court, but his request had been rejected by the judge.

During the hearing, Khan’s lawyer Advocate Babar Awan tried to convince the court that the PTI chief should not be named in the case, arguing that he was not named in the statements by the police officials that were attacked by the protesters in 2014.

The counsel informed the court that 11 witnesses had recorded their statements regarding the attack on Junejo and Constable Sajjad Ahmed but the officials had not specifically named Imran Khan.

He also read out the FIR and the statements of the SSP and constable in the court.

The prosecutor opposed Awan’s arguments, saying that Khan and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief Tahirul Qadri had incited violence during the protests that ultimately led to the attack on the PTV, SSP Junejo and Constable Ahmed.

The prosecutor, however, said that he had recordings of the speeches given by Khan during the protests as well as pictures of the attack on PTV.

He then showed the pictures in the courtroom.

Babar responded that Khan’s protest was not to spread violence but to provide awareness to the public.

When the judge asked whether any of the PTV attackers, who had been identified from the CCTV footage obtained from the state television headquarters, were arrested, the police officials responded in negative.

The prosecutor told the court that Dr Arif Alvi informed Khan about the attack on the PTV, which the PTI chairman “appreciated”.

He also presented the recording of telephonic conversation between Imran Khan and Arif Alvi.

At this, Babar asked that under what law a personal call was recorded.

He told the court that Imran Khan had nothing to do with the attack on the PTV, adding that the government wanted to acquire Khan’s phone in the hope that it would find something against the PTI chairman.

The ATC judge reserved the decision after hearing the arguments. Later, he announced the verdict by accepting Khan’s bail plea in the cases.

Source: The Nation