By Staff Reporter
LAHORE: Two anti-terrorism courts on Tuesday sentenced several senior leaders of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party to 10 years in prison each for their roles in violent protests sparked by the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan in May 2023.
In Lahore, a court convicted a former governor and former health minister, while in Sargodha, the sitting opposition leader in the Punjab assembly was among those sentenced.
The Lahore court convicted Dr. Yasmeen Rashid, former Punjab governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema, Mian Mehmood ur Rasheed, Senator Ejaz Chaudhry, and Afzal Azeem Pahat for their involvement in the May 9
The verdict, reserved earlier, was announced by the ATC amid heightened political tensions. In the same case, however, former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi was acquitted, along with Hamza Azeem Pahat, Rana Tanveer, and Aizaz Rafiq.
In a separate ruling on the same day, another ATC in Sargodha handed down 10-year sentences to Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Ahmed Khan Bachar, Member of the National Assembly Mohammad Ahmed Chattha, and 32 other PTI workers for vandalism tied to the May 9 unrest. The dual verdicts underscored the legal challenges facing PTI as it ramps up its latest anti-government campaign directed by Khan from prison.
The decision has deepened Pakistan’s political divide, pitting Khan’s PTI party against a government that hailed the verdict as a triumph of justice, while the opposition decried it as a judicial overreach.
The convictions stem from the chaotic events of May 9, 2023, when Khan’s arrest at the Islamabad High Court in a graft case sparked nationwide protests. The demonstrations quickly turned violent, with PTI supporters attacking public properties and military installations, including the Corps Commander House in Lahore, known as Jinnah House.
The unrest marked a turning point in Pakistan’s political landscape, intensifying the confrontation between Khan’s party and the ruling coalition that ousted him in April 2022 via a no-confidence vote. Khan, who has been incarcerated since August 2023 on charges ranging from corruption to terrorism, remains a polarizing figure. The Lahore High Court recently dismissed his bail petitions in eight cases linked to the May 9 riots, including the Jinnah House attack, further tightening the legal noose around the former premier and his party.
The sentencing comes as PTI formally launched an anti-government campaign last week, with plans to escalate protests by August 5 under Khan’s directives from prison. The latest court rulings add to the mounting pressures on the party, which has seen several senior leaders and workers arrested or quite the party since the riots.
Punjab assembly opposition leader posting on X, vowed to stand by Khan despite the sentence. “I will not abandon my support of Imran.”
“The verdict was delivered in a politically motivated case that deviated from constitutional principles,” he said in a separate statement, arguing that the decision lacked legal grounding. “Following the 26th Amendment, the ruling regime has brought the judiciary under its influence.”
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said people have lost faith in the courts. “Today’s verdicts are proof that the judiciary has collapsed,” he said
Gohar pointed to procedural irregularities, including the repeated use of the same two witnesses across multiple May 9-related cases and the trial of a single case in different jurisdictions, which he argued violated the Constitution. “They had only demanded the right to a fair trial,” he said of the accused PTI leaders.
Salman Akram Raja, another prominent PTI figure, went further, framing the sentences as “an attack on democracy itself.” “In multiple cases across Punjab, the same individual is levelling identical allegations.” Raja urged the judiciary and state institutions to consider the broader implications of such proceedings for justice and civil liberties in Pakistan.
The government framed the court decision as a triumph for the rule of law. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, Minister of State for Law and Justice Barrister Aqeel Malik described the sentencing as “a very positive step as justice has been upheld.”
He stressed that the trial had adhered to legal standards, with witnesses testifying and facing cross-examination. “Both sides gave their closing statements, and today the verdict that was announced is according to the constitution and law.”
Malik argued that the ruling sent a clear message. “When you take the law into your own hand, whether you’re an MNA or MPA or opposition leader … the [status] doesn’t matter, as the law is equal for everyone and will come into force.” He accused the PTI of orchestrating the riots with meticulous planning, alleging that over 200 locations were “carefully curated” for attack. The minister expressed confidence that other cases tied to the May 9 unrest would soon reach resolution.
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