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The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday overturned the 10-year prison sentences of four Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) members who had been convicted for attacking a police station during the violent riots on May 9, 2023, as reported by the Dawn.
As per Dawn, the PTI supporters on that day protested the arrest of party founder Imran Khan, resulting in widespread violence across the country. The protests involved vandalism of military sites and government buildings and an attack on the residence of the Lahore corps commander, with thousands of protesters, including party leaders, being subsequently arrested. An Anti-Terrorism Court in Islamabad earlier on May 30 sentenced PTI MNA Abdul Latif and 11 other party members for their involvement in the attack on the Ramna police station in Islamabad. Four of those convicted--Mira Khan, Muhammad Akram, Shahzeb, and Sohail Khan--were taken into police custody following the verdict, as reported by Dawn. However, during Thursday's hearing, Justices Azam Khan and Khadim Soomro acquitted the four individuals, citing the prosecution's failure to prove their presence at the scene of the protest based on witness testimonies. The accused had faced charges under multiple sections of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), including rioting with deadly weapons (Section 148), unlawful assembly (Section 149), obstructing official duty (Section 186), disobeying public servants' orders (Section 188), attempted murder (Section 324), assault on public servants (Section 353), arson (Section 436), and mischief (Section 440), the Dawn reported. They were also charged under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) of 1997. According to Dawn, the sentences included 10 years under Section 7 of the ATA, five years under Section 324 of the PPC, four years under Section 436, and two years each under Sections 353 and 148. Additionally, they were sentenced to four years imprisonment and fined PKR 40,000 for burning a motorcycle (Section 426) and another four years and PKR 40,000 for vandalising the police station (Section 440). They also received three months for obstructing police duties (Section 186), one month for violating Section 144 (participating in an unlawful armed assembly), and two years for crimes committed as part of an illegal assembly (Section 149). The court's decision to acquit came after the prosecution failed to substantiate the charges against the four accused. (ANI)
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