ISLAMABAD: Incarcerat­­ed PTI founder Imran Khan and his spouse, Bushra Bibi, on Thursday sought relief from high courts after their latest round of arrests and remand approvals.

The former prime minister approached the Lahore High Court (LHC) against his ten-day physical remand in 12 cases related to the violence on May 9.

In the Islamabad High Court (IHC), meanwhile, Mr Khan and his wife filed bail petitions after their arrest in the new case for allegedly selling seven expensive watches acquired from the Toshakhana.

Mr Khana filed a writ petition in the LHC through his counsel, Barrister Salman Safdar, arguing that on July 15, an anti-terrorism court had granted his custody to police in a hearing which he attended on a Whatsapp video call from Adiala jail, Rawalpindi.

He argued that the order issued by the court was tantamount to “misreading” established principles on the law of remand and urged the court to set it aside for being “unlawful”.

PTI founder wants LHC to set aside remand in May 9 cases; couple approaches IHC for post-arrest bail in fresh NAB case

The law does not allow any court to grant physical re­­mand of an accused who didn’t physically appear in the court.

However, in this case, the judge “completely overlooked” the guidelines provided in statute and jurisprudence settled by superior courts.

Mr Khan, in his petition, stated that his remand was “unjustifiable” as the sole allegation against him was of abetment and conspiracy and his participation in the investigation was not required as the FIR was “wholly silent about his specific role”.

It further said the prosecution didn’t arrest the petition for more than a year after May 9, 2023, even when his whereabouts were “known to the police authorities as he was under the custody of state at Adiala jail, Rawalpindi”.

The petition said the FIR contains allegations related to public protests following Mr Khan’s arrest, and when the said offences — for which he has been charged — occurred, he was “absolutely incommunicado” as he was in the “unlawful custody” of the NAB.

The trial judge was informed that the petitioner’s physical remand would not serve any useful purpose as he was allegedly only an abettor and was not present on the scene, the petition added.

Bench overrules objections

Separately, a two-member LHC bench, headed by Justice Shehram Sarwar Chaudhry, on Thursday overruled the registrar office’s objection to Mr Khan’s petitions over the denial of pre-arrest bail in three May 9 cases.

The registrar’s office had objected to the pleas for not attaching certified copies of FIRs.

After the PTI founder’s lawyer assured the court that FIRs would be provided, the bench overruled the objection and fixed the petitions for hearing on July 22.

The petitions challenged the July 9 decision of ATC to reject Mr Khan’s bail applications in three cases of May 9 riots, including one registered over the attack on the residence of the Lahore corps commander.

Imran, Bushra move IHC

In the IHC, Barrister Salman Safdar, Advocate Usman Riaz Gill and Khalid Yousaf Chaudhry filed the post-arrest bail petition for Mr Khan and his wife.

The petition pleaded that Mr Khan had already joined the investigation and there was no need for his arrest.

The petition termed the arrest against the principles laid down by the superior judiciary that barred the arrest of a suspect without tangible evidence and on the basis of mere nomination in a criminal case.

According to the petition, the couple were arre­sted soon after their acquittal in the iddat case.

It said that while petitions for the couple’s pre-arrest bail were pending before the same court, the accountability watchdog arrested them in a “malafide manner” and for “political victimisation”.

Meanwhile, IHC Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, while hearing the case related to Mr Khan’s meeting with his party leaders, remarked that apparently the cases against him are of “political consequences”.

Justice Khan passed these remarks after the Islamabad advocate general apprised the court that Mr Khan was facing dozens of cases and instead of his counsels pursuing the cases, the lawyers belonging to his political party come to meet him in the Adiala Jail.

The judge asked the advocate general if he was alluding that all cases registered against Mr Khan were genuine and not out of consequence of political reasons.

Mr Khan’s counsel, Advocate Shoaib Shaheen, said the jail administration kept the visitors waiting for hours and did not even allow lawyers to take the documents related to the cases to the incarcerated leader.

Justice Khan observed that it is tantamount to obstruction of justice and warned of contempt proceedings if the jail administration creates hurdles for the counsel of Mr Khan and his spouse.

Later, further hearing was adjourned till Sept 13.

Wajih Ahmad Sheikh in Lahore also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, July 19th, 2024