The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday granted PTI Chairman Imran Khan protective bail till May 3 in a mutiny case registered against him at the capital’s Ramna police station.

IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, who presided over the hearing, approved Imran’s bail against the submission of surety bonds worth Rs100,000.

Earlier this month, Manzoor Ahmed Khan, a magistrate, filed a first information report (FIR) at Islamabad’s Ramna police station against Imran for “spreading hatred between the institutions and the public” and for “trying to cause unforgivable damage to the institutions and their top officers”.

Earlier today, the PTI chief had filed a plea through his counsels seeking protective bail in the case. The registrar’s office had raised a few objections to the plea, one of which pertained to the lack of biometric verification. However, the PTI legal team later addressed and resolved these objections after which it was taken up for hearing.

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on April 14 had granted the ex-PM protective bail in the case until April 26. Subsequently, Imran had approached the IHC requesting that the mutiny case against him be quashed.

Today’s hearing

During today’s hearing, Imran’s legal team comprising Barrister Salman Safdar, Faisal Chaudhry, Ali Bukhari, and others, appeared in court.

At the outset of the hearing, Safdar informed the court that the issue regarding the biometric verification had been resolved.

However, Advocate General Islamabad Jahangir Jadoon objected to Imran’s plea being heard the same day it had been filed. Jadoon remarked others should receive the same treatment if they filed similar pleas.

However, the court emphasised that the petitioner, being a resident of Pakistan, had the right to be granted bail.

The advocate general acknowledged the court’s stance, but suggested that the petitioner be directed to appear before the relevant court after being granted bail.

At the AG’s request, the court instructed the PTI chief to become a part of the investigation and granted him bail till May 3.

The petition, filed by the PTI chief’s legal team, contended that the incumbent government had lodged the case against Imran for political reasons and to tarnish his reputation.

According to the petition, the government has failed to find an iota of corruption against Imran and therefore, it is now dragging him into frivolous cases to blackmail him. The petition urged the court to quash the FIR.

Hold talks only if govt ready to dissolve assemblies forthwith, Imran tells party leaders

During an informal conversation with journalists inside the courtroom, Imran stated that he had requested Fawad Chaudhry and Shah Mehmood Qureshi to initiate talks with the government only if the ruling party was prepared to immediately dissolve the assemblies and hold elections.

He added, “There’s no need to proceed if they insist on holding polls in September or October,” with both Chaudhry and Qureshi present during the conversation.

It is important to note that ex-ministers Qureshi and Chaudhry are part of a three-member team that the PTI has formed to hold talks with the government for “meaningful dialogue” on holding elections within the ambit of the Constitution and as per the top court’s orders.

PTI decries violence against ‘peaceful’ workers

Meanwhile, Imran alleged that Islamabad police had taken PTI workers, present outside the court, into custody while they were “peacefully sitting in their vehicles”.

Tweeting a video of the alleged incident, the PTI chief said: “Our workers were sitting in their vehicles peacefully when ICT police, in brazen display of state oppression, pulled them out and took them away. This is why they want elections to be delayed because they feel they can break PTI by then, through fear of jail and harassment. Won’t work.”

PTI leader Shireen Mazari said that the “cabal of crooks and their handlers” had turned Islamabad police into a force for “terrorising citizens”.

“Today, they literally dragged PTI people sitting peacefully in their cars waiting for Imran Khan and took them away. Fascism at its peak — government so fearful of PTI popularity in nation!” she said.

Later, Islamabad Police said in a tweet that it had arrested 33 people from around the IHC, who it said were later released “on the assurance of good behaviour and following legal conditions”.

It said they had been arrested for “rioting and interfering in government matters” and had assured the police of not violating the law in the future.

“Equal law applies to everyone and no one will be discriminated against,” the police wrote.

The FIR

The FIR against Imran, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, was registered at the Ramna police station under sections 138 (abetment of act of insubordination by soldier, sailor or airman), 500 (punishment for defamation) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

According to the FIR, in a speech from Zaman Park Lahore on March 19 that was aired on BOL News, Imran made several allegations against a senior officer of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and allegedly conducted a “character assassination”.

The FIR mentioned the PTI chief’s speeches on November 4 and 11, 2022 and October 28 and 29, 2022, in which he allegedly used inappropriate words for the ISI and army officials. It said Imran had used offensive language and had threatened the families of senior officers.

It also alleged he provoked extremists and put the lives of the family members of a senior officer under constant threat, it added.

The complainant further alleged the former prime minister damaged the army’s reputation through his statements, as a result of which foreign agencies took advantage of the situation and attacked Imran and tried to create a rift between the public and the army.

He claimed that the purpose of Imran’s speeches was to “make the soldiers revolt against their oath and the officers through a conspiracy”, for which it also uses Twitter and other social media platforms.

The FIR further said that through these speeches, the former premier “tried to create such an atmosphere among the top army officers and other soldiers that they do not listen to their officer’s commands”.