Pakistan court suspends physical remand of opposition party MPs arrested after rally

A convoy of Pakistani army passes the Islamabad High Court building in Islamabad on August 29, 2023. (AFP/File)

• PTI last week held a rally in Islamabad to demand the release of Khan, imprisoned since August last year
• Police later arrested and booked nearly a dozen PTI lawmakers for violating a new law on public gatherings

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has suspended the physical remand of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party lawmakers who were arrested earlier this week on charges of violating a new law to regulate public gatherings, the PTI said on Friday.
The PTI held a rally in Islamabad on Sunday to demand the release of Khan, the party’s founder and former Pakistani prime minister who has been in prison since August last year on a slew of charges. The Islamabad administration had allowed the PTI to hold Sunday’s rally from 4pm till 7pm, but it went on until around 11pm. Though the gathering was mostly peaceful, a policeman was injured in clashes between police and PTI supporters en route to the rally.
The following day, police arrested nearly a dozen PTI lawmakers from inside the parliament building and charged them with violating the Peaceful Assembly and Public Order Act, 2024, which allows authorities to set time limits and designate special areas for public gatherings in the federal capital.
“The IHC has suspended the physical remand of PTI’s leadership issued by the anti-terrorism court,” the party said in a statement shared with reporters on Friday. “They will be transferred to the prison whereas bail applications will be moved.”
The PTI legislators had been remanded in police custody for eight days on Tuesday by an anti-terrorism court.
The arrests drew criticism from government and opposition members alike and prompted the National Assembly speaker to order an inquiry as under Pakistani law, legislators cannot be detained from within the precincts of parliament without the speaker’s permission.
On the speaker’s orders, the lawmakers were also produced at the National Assembly on Thursday, with the lower house of parliament also adopting a unanimous resolution to constitute an 18-member committee to resolve issues related to the House.
The working of the committee, however, was put in jeopardy on Friday after Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, a close aide of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, recused himself from the body, saying the PTI was using it to “promote their narrative.”
“I protested over this and I don’t want to be a part of that committee anymore,” he said, addressing a National Assembly session. “I’ve informed my party leadership too.”
Asif said the committee was formed to protect the sanctity of the National Assembly and its constitutional role and not for pandering political narratives.
The PTI says it has faced an over a year-long crackdown since protesters allegedly linked to the party attacked and damaged government and military installations on May 9, 2023 after Khan’s brief arrest that day in a land graft case.
Hundreds of PTI followers and leaders were arrested following the riots and many remain behind bars as they await trial. The military, which says Khan and his party were behind the attacks, has also initiated army court trials of at least 103 people accused of involvement in the violence.
Khan, who is in jail since last August, was ousted from the PM’s office in 2022 in a parliamentary vote of no confidence after what is widely believed to be a falling out with Pakistan’s powerful military, which denies being involved in politics.
Since his removal, Khan and his party have waged an unprecedented campaign of defiance against the military and now the PTI is aiming to mobilize the public through rallies to call for their leader’s release from jail in “politically motivated” cases.
The party’s next rally is planned for Sept. 22 in the eastern city of Lahore.