CJ IHC Aamer Farooq grants Imran Khan protective bail till May 3 in mutiny case registered against him in Ramna police station

ISLAMABAD, April 28 (SABAH): The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday granted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan protective bail till May 3 in a mutiny case registered against him at the capital’s Ramna police station.

IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, who presided over the hearing, approved Imran’s bail against the submission of surety bonds worth Rs100,000.

Earlier this month, Manzoor Ahmed Khan, a magistrate, filed a first information report (FIR) at Islamabad’s Ramna police station against Imran for “spreading hatred between the institutions and the public” and for “trying to cause unforgivable damage to the institutions and their top officers”.

Earlier on Friday, the PTI chief had filed a plea through his counsels seeking protective bail in the case. The registrar’s office had raised a few objections to the plea, one of which pertained to the lack of biometric verification. However, the PTI legal team later addressed and resolved these objections after which it was taken up for hearing.

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on April 14 had granted the ex-PM protective bail in the case until April 26. Subsequently, Imran Khan had approached the IHC requesting that the mutiny case against him be quashed.

During Friday’s hearing, Imran Khan’s legal team comprising Barrister Salman Safdar, Faisal Chaudhry, Ali Bukhari, and others, appeared in court.

At the outset of the hearing, Safdar informed the court that the issue regarding the biometric verification had been resolved.

However, Advocate General Islamabad Barrister Jahangir Khan Jadoon objected to Imran Khan’s plea being heard the same day it had been filed. Jadoon argued that the others should receive the same treatment if they filed similar pleas.

However, the court emphasised that the petitioner, being a resident of Pakistan, had the right to be granted bail.

The advocate general acknowledged the court’s stance, but suggested that the petitioner be directed to appear before the relevant court after being granted bail.

At the AG’s request, the court instructed the PTI chief to become a part of the investigation and granted him bail till May 3.

The petition, filed by the PTI chief’s legal team, contended that the incumbent government had lodged the case against Imran for political reasons and to tarnish his reputation.

According to the petition, the government has failed to find an iota of corruption against Imran and therefore, it is now dragging him into frivolous cases to blackmail him. The petition urged the court to quash the FIR.

IHC CJ Aamer Farooq approved Imran’s bail until May 3 against the submission of surety bonds worth Rs100,000 and ordered him to become part of the investigation.

The court has also ordered the former premier to ensure his appearance in every proceeding.

Simultaneously, notices were issued o the police and the federation seeking arguments on whether the IHC alone has the authority to grant permanent bail to Imran. The deadline for submitting their written responses is also May 3.