By Staff Reporter
LAHORE: Lahore High Court on Thursday ordered police to postpone an operation to arrest Imran Khan for another day after violent clashes near his home in the eastern city of Lahore earlier week prevented law enforcers from detaining him.
The court stated in the later-issued judgement that the “order imposed yesterday” should remain in effect until the next hearing.
Fawad Chaudhry, a senior leader of Khan’s Pakistan Tahreek-e-Insaf party said the Lahore High Court had extended an order to halt the police operation until Friday.
Usman Anwar, the Punjab police chief, said police would “comply with the court order”.
Violence erupted in Lahore on Tuesday when hundreds of Khan’s supporters clashed with police when they tried to arrest the former premier at his house in the upscale Zaman Park neighborhood. Khan’s supporters hurled petrol bombs, rocks and bricks at police. Officers responded by swinging batons, firing tear gas and using water cannons. They failed to arrest Khan.
The court’s order sent a wave of relief among Khan’s supporters, though security forces deployed around Khan’s home were still at the scene.
The court has also barred Khan’s party from holding a rally on Sunday ahead of elections for the assembly in Punjab.
A lower court in Islamabad, however rejected a petition from former premier’s lawyers to suspend a warrant for him to appear in court in the Toshakhan case.
Legal experts said the development increases the likelihood of another police attempt to arrest the ousted premier.
Sessions court judge Zafar Iqbal had issued the non-bailable warrant following Khan’s repeated absence from previous hearings of the Toshakhana reference, involving the sale of state gifts given by foreign leaders while Khan was prime minister.
Khan aides say he does not attend court hearings due to security threats.
“The court has rejected the request of Imran Khan to suspend his non-bailable arrest warrant,” Judge Iqbal said.
“Keeping in view, past order development of issuance of non-bailable warrant of arrest and act and conduct of the applicant, the warrant may not be canceled just on the basis of his undertaking,” the written decision said.
“In the light of the discussion, it is concluded that the application is not justified by law as well as fact which is hereby rejected.”
The Islamabad High Court had permitted the court to make a decision in accordance with the law, the decision said, adding that the Inspector General of Islamabad Police had provided a list of injured police officers and also provided the court with images of the resistance police in Lahore.
“Keeping in view the law and order situation created by the applicant, he has lost some of the normal rights branded by the procedural as well as substantive laws and he has to actually surrender before the court due to his defiance of the court process,” the decision stated. It added that such an eventuality was never appreciated by the court and it was regarded as willful default.”
“Law is equal for powerful and weak segments of the society and it is not fun to tender such an undertaking after causing a great loss to the public exchequer as well as damage to the persons and properties,” it added.
Meanwhile, PTI chief was booked in a case pertaining to the violence that ensued after police attempted to arrest the former premier while battling scores of PTI supporters.
On Thursday, in the fresh first information report (FIR) registered at the Race Course police station, the former prime minister has been booked under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) which also carried the legal provisions pertaining to rioting among other charges.
The FIR states that “grave crimes” were committed by PTI leaders and hundreds of workers at the behest of Khan, whereby the party chairman alongside his associates has also been charged with criminal conspiracy.
Other provisions include unlawful assembly of armed persons, refusal to receive summons, obstructing justice and harbouring criminals. The FIR further stated that PTI workers caused difficulties to citizens, used petrol bombs and damaged state property while injuring 63 police personnel including DIG Islamabad.
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