LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court on Saturday issued non-bailable arrest warrants for PTI former MNA Aliya Hamza Malik, social media activist Tayaba Ambreen Raja and nine others for not appearing in the trial proceedings of Jinnah House attack.

ATC-I Judge Manzer Ali Gill conducted the proceedings at Kot Lakhpat Jail, however, elevation suspects including the two women, who are on bail, once again failed to appear.

The judge expressed displeasure over the continuous absence of the suspects and issued their arrest warrants with a direction to police to produce them on Dec 19.

Other suspects are Attaur Rehman, Arbaz Khan, Abdul Razzaq, Ali Asad, Hashim Maqsood, Farhan Bukhari, Atif Munir, Sagheer Kamal, Abbas Ali and Muhammad Imran.

The judge observed that the absence of the suspects had been delaying the trial proceedings. He said the police should ensure the arrest and appearance of the suspects before the court.

Separately, the judge also initiated proceedings against the bail guarantor of Aliya Hamza for her failure to appear in Shadman police station attack trial.

The judge issued a notice to the guarantor, Jamil Ahmed, a resident of DHA, to appear in court on Dec 20. He expressed dissatisfaction over Ms Malik’s repeated absence and warned that her bail bond of Rs200,000 may be confiscated.

The judge further directed the Shadman station house officer to ensure the guarantor’s presence on the next hearing. He warned that failure to comply with the court order could result in the guarantor’s arrest.

Published in Dawn, December 8th, 2024