By On Thursday, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended the physical remand of several Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders who had been arrested in connection with cases from a recent party rally. The division bench, consisting of Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, was reviewing a petition from advocate Shoaib Shaheen, who was also detained after the September 8 protests.
During the hearing, the prosecutor general opposed the suspension, arguing it might send a “negative signal.” However, Chief Justice Farooq questioned this concern, suggesting that a suspension would lead to the accused being moved to judicial custody rather than continuing with the current remand.
The defense contended that the trial court had extended the remand without adequate justification and that lengthy physical remands should be avoided. The prosecutor defended the remand by citing details from the FIRs against the accused.
The IHC has adjourned the case until today (September 13).
This development follows the recent arrests of 10 PTI members who were ordered to attend the National Assembly session. On September 10, police raided the parliament and detained several PTI leaders, including Sahibzada Hamid Raza, head of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC). The arrests occurred after PTI staged a rally in the capital, leading to charges of violating recently enacted laws.
Sources indicate that police, dressed in plain clothes, entered the National Assembly after the lights were turned off. PTI leaders, including Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Sher Afzal Khan Marwat, and Advocate Shoaib Shaheen, were arrested outside the parliament, along with two security personnel stationed at the Parliament Service Centre.
The cases against them, filed at Sangjani and CTD police stations, involve serious charges under the Anti-Terrorism Act and the “Peaceful Assembly and Public Order Act 2024.” Despite official warnings, the rally continued with anti-state rhetoric, and tensions escalated when law enforcement requested that the event be halted, leading to the arrests.
