Pakistan: Anti-Terrorism Court defers several GHQ attacks and May 9 cases

During the hearing of the cases presided over by Rawalpindi's ATC Judge Syed Amjad Ali Shah, the judge was told that the two key witnesses in the GHQ attack cases--Sub Inspector Riaz and Magistrate Mujtaba-ul-Hasan--were not present in court due to official duty at a cricket stadium and vacations, respectively.

Considering the witnesses' absence, the judge, after consulting with the prosecution and the lawyers for the suspects, deferred the hearing of the cases until April 16 while directing the witnesses to be present in the court during the next hearing. Both witnesses have been summoned continuously. However, they failed to appear in any hearing of the case in the past two months.

The Express Tribune reported that the charge sheets were submitted for the cases related to the May 9 protests, vandalism, and arson lodged at three police stations--Waris Khan, City Police Station, and Hazro Police Station--and copies were distributed among the accused.

The indictment in the case is scheduled for April 19. However, the court is unlikely to indict the accused on April 19 as copies of the charge sheets have not been provided to all the accused including PTI founder Imran Khan, Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi, PTI leaders Shireen Mazari and Omar Ayub.

Violent clashes erupted in Pakistan after Imran Khan was arrested on May 9, 2023. The protests were held in remote and major cities as PTI workers were angry over the arrest of the party founder, with Balochistan, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Islamabad summoning the armed forces to ensure law and order. Army installations, including the Corps Commander's house in Lahore, were attacked during the protests held by PTI workers.

Meanwhile, the court expressed displeasure over the non-submission of charge sheets in 10 cases, including the attack on GHQ Gate 4, the attack on the Army Museum, and the arson at the Metro Bus Station.

The court summoned former SP City Faisal Saleem and directed the submission of chargesheets in these cases by the next hearing. The court also summoned the accused in these cases. The court agreed to the requests made by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, Senator Shibli Faraz, and Shireen Mazari for exemption of appearance in court.

Former Punjab Assembly deputy speaker Wasiq Qayyum Abbasi, after receiving charge sheets in three cases, told the court that he had not turned approver against Imran Khan and had not given any statement to the police or before a magistrate as a prosecution witness, The Express Tribune reported.

He also submitted a formal written statement to the court in this matter. Pakistan's former interior minister Sheikh Rashid and PTI leaders Omar Ayub Khan, Rashid Shafiq, Major Tahir Sadiq, Sadaqat Abbasi, Basharat Raja, and Seemabia Tahir were among the 500 accused who appeared in court. The police had enforced tight security arrangements for the hearing. (ANI)