LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court on Saturday remanded a woman activist and two lawyers affiliated to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) in police custody for their involvement in two different criminal cases, one of these pertaining to the May 9 riots.

Racecourse police presented social media activist Sanam Javed before the court on expiry of her two-day physical remand previously granted by a duty judicial magistrate.

The investigating officer told the court that the activist was involved in attacking a senior police officer and vehicles outside Zaman Park residence of PTI Chairman Imran Khan.

He said the suspect also hurled petrol bombs at the police when it reached Zaman Park to arrest the former prime minister.

He said the suspect’s custody was required to conduct a photogrammetric test and investigation.

A counsel for the suspect opposed the remand.

He said the police re-arrested the woman after the trial court granted her bail in old cases. He said the police acted with sheer mala fide. He said the police wanted to keep the activist behind bars by implicating her in fabricated cases.

ATC duty judge Arshad Javed allowed the police request and granted three-day physical remand of the activist.

The police made the fresh arrest of the woman activist from Kot Lakhpat jail on Nov 8 when she was supposed to be released following her bail in three previous cases related to the May 9 riots, including attacks on the corps commander’s house and the PML-N office in Model Town.

Separately, an anti-terrorism court allowed Sarwar Road police four-day physical remand of Advocate Afzaal Azeem Pahat, his son Hamza Pahat (also a lawyer) and brother Khalid Pahat in a case of attacking police and torching its vehicles near Sher Pao Bridge in the Cantonment area during the May 9 riots.

The investigating officer presented the suspects before the court and stated that they had been recognised by the prosecution witnesses during their identification parade conducted in jail.

He asked the court to grant physical remand of the suspects to make recovery and hold investigation in the case.

A defence counsel argued that the police arrested the suspects to teach them a lesson for holding a corner meeting of the PTI in Kahna area.

He asked the court to turn down the police request for remand.

However, the court granted remand of the suspects to the police.

Published in Dawn, November 12th, 2023