Chairman PTI arrested from Zaman Park

LAHORE: Former prime minister and Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Imran Khan, has been arrested from his house at Zaman Park, Lahore, according to his Lawyer Intazar Hussain Panjutha.

Chairman IK arrested from Zaman Park Lahore

— Intazar Hussain Panjutha (@intazarpanjutha) August 5, 2023

Earlier, Islamabad Sessions Court Judge, Humayun Dilawar, handed down a verdict against the PTI Chairman. The conviction, under section 174 of the Elections Act, entails a three-year sentence to jail and a five-year disqualification from running for public office.

According to the Punjab information minister, the former PM is being shifted to Islamabad, by air, in police custody.

Islamabad on ‘high alert’

Meanwhile, security measures in Islamabad have been bolstered, with sources reporting heavy deployment of additional police personnel as well as patrols conducted by the Frontier Constabulary (FC) and Rangers.

Sources maintain that police have compiled lists of active workers in Islamabad as a precursor for a crackdown against possible protests in the city.

Section 144 imposed in Peshawar

Section 144 has been imposed in Peshawar for a week. As per the notification, a ban on all kinds of processions, rallies, and demonstrations at any public place has been enforced. Additionally, gatherings of more than five people are prohibited.

The case

Earlier on Saturday, Sessions Court Judge, Humayun Dilawar, had handed down a verdict against the PTI Chairman. The conviction, under section 174 of the Elections Act, entails a three-year sentence to jail and a five-year disqualification from running for public office.

Senior Lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan, while commenting on the events, stated that the decision of the Sessions Court would be suspended by tomorrow, and even if chairman PTI is incarcerated, he is expected to be released by Monday.

He further disclosed that the matter will be brought before the Islamabad High Court.

PTI terms party chief’s arrest as ‘political engineering’

In a statement issued by the central media department of party, the arrest of PTI chief has been termed as part of ‘London Plan’ in order to get the level playing field for the elections.

“The order of Additional Session Judge Humayun Dilawar is completely biased and it would be challenged in the higher court,” the statement issued by the PTI said.

Separately Vice Chairman of PTI, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, has alleged political motives behind the arrest of their party chairman, stating that the decision was made hastily.

“PTI Chairman was denied a fair trial as a citizen, with witnesses not allowed to present their accounts'” he said while adding that “the chairman had already expressed mistrust in the judge,” revealing plans to challenge the Sessions Court’s decision.

Change of Plans

Punjab authorities have informed media that due to bad weather, the plan to transport Khan to Islamabad by air was being cancelled. He will now be shifted, by road, to Islamabad where preparations are underway for his possible incarceration at Adiala Jail, sources say.

Government’s stance:

Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that sentencing of PTI chairman in the Toshakhana case is not related to elections and politics but a conviction for his crimes.

“The detailed verdict has demonstrated that the PTI Chairman engaged in corrupt practices by making and publishing false statements.”

She firmly asserted that the court’s decision is not politically motivated, and all legal formalities were properly followed during the case proceedings.

The minister blamed him for weaponising National Accountability Bureau, Federal Investigation Agency, and other authorities against his opponents, devoid of legal procedures.

Regarding today’s Council of Common Interest meeting, she informed that no final decisions have been made on the agenda items due to the Chief Minister of Baluchistan arriving late, causing delays in discussions.

The Minister urged the media not to disseminate any misinformation regarding this sensitive matter.

Short decision of the court

The short decision of the court says that the former PM “has been found guilty of corrupt practices by hiding the benefits he accrued from national exchequer willfully and intentionally.”

Toshakhana Short Decision

Judge Humayun Dilawar’s 30-page detailed decision will be issued later by the sessions court.

What do the lawyers say?

Senior advocate Hifza Bokhari told Hum News English that “the court provided each and every opportunity to PTI chairman and even continued to grant him exemption from appearing in the court. But he and his lawyers avoided defending him in the court and instead tried their best to defame the judge through fake posts on social media.”

Bokhari argued that the court’s verdict was based on concrete evidence and suggested that chairman PTI, aware of the strong evidence against him, was trying hard to halt proceedings in the Toshakhana case. She suggests that it is unlikely that the high court will grant him a relief even if he appeals against the decision.

“I don’t see any kind of relief because chairman PTI has not contested his case on legal grounds, and he continued to seek suspension of proceedings in this case.”

Contrarily, senior legal practitioner Shoaib Shaheen sharply criticized the verdict, telling Hum News English that “the verdict is a murder of justice. IHC directed the sessions judge to hear arguments about maintainability of the case, but the judge ignored these directives.”

Shaheen also claimed that their right to defense was denied, asserting that “our right to defense was denied as the sessions court never allowed our lawyers to plead the case, he said while adding that “when PTI chairman will challenge it, the court will immediately suspend it.”

Earlier cases

Following are some details of the cases against him:

Chairman PTI was convicted of misusing his 2018-2022 premiership to buy and sell gifts in state possession that were received during visits abroad and worth more than Rs140 million.

The gifts allegedly included watches given by a royal family, according to government officials, who have alleged previously that Khan’s aides sold them in Dubai. The list, which Reuters could not independently verify, also contains perfumes, diamond jewellery and dinner sets.

The gifts allegedly include seven watches, six of them Rolexes. The most expensive was a “Master Graff limited edition” valued at Rs85 million, according to a list shared by Pakistan’s information minister.

Chairman PTI has said he had legally purchased the items.

Pakistan’s election tribunal in October also found him guilty of unlawfully selling state gifts as premier.

He maintains that 76 cases have been registered against him since he was ousted by a parliamentary vote in April 2022, less than four years into his five-year term.

He was arrested in May by Pakistan’s anti-graft agency in connection with another corruption case. He denied wrongdoing and was released on bail within days. –(Source: Reuters)

Supreme Court (SC) returns appeal against IHC verdict in Toshakhana case

The SC raised objections on the appeal, citing issues with the power of attorney and the signatures on the petition. The top court also noted the non-payment of the official court fee and illegibility of certain pages in the appeal.

The legal team of the former premier has been given two weeks to address these objections.

The appeal sought to declare the Toshakhana case non-maintainable and halt its trial while challenging the decision to remand the issue of maintainability back to the trial court.

PTI’s Core Committee convenes emergency meeting

The meeting, presided over by the party’s Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, focused on the Additional District and Sessions Judge’s decision in the Tosha Khana case and the subsequent arrest of the PTI Chairman.

According to the party’s media outreach wing, the committee discussed future strategies, including legal proceedings for Khan’s release and expressed its belief that the decision had been delivered through a “fake trial”, leading to Khan’s arrest.

It called on the Supreme Court to hear the appeal against the decision without delays, “regardless of holidays and other routines.”

The declaration also called on PTI workers to remain peaceful, and protest within the framework of the constitution and law, according to the media handout released by the party.

Developing story

Read more: Toshakhana case: 3 years jail, 5 years disqualification for PTI chairman