Pakistan SC to hear Imran Khan's appeals against bail denial in May 9 violence cases

Islamabad [Pakistan], August 10 : The Supreme Court of Pakistan is set to resume hearing appeals filed by former Prime Minister and PTI founding chairman Imran Khan against the Lahore High Court's (LHC) denial of bail in cases related to the May 9 violence, Dawn reported.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi, along with Justice Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, will take up the matter on August 12. The proceedings were previously adjourned due to the unavailability of senior counsel Salman Safdar, representing Khan, Dawn added.

In his appeals, Khan stated that the LHC denied post-arrest bail to him in eight cases related to May 9 violence, including attacks on Askari Tower at Liberty Chowk, PML-N offices in Model Town, Shadman police station, the burning of police vehicles near the Lahore corps commander's residence, and violence at Sherpao Bridge, Dawn reported.

He claimed that he was accused of conspiring and abetting violence on May 9 while he was in custody of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) at the time. Khan's appeal argued that his involvement was "impossible", reminding the court that the Supreme Court had already held that the case of an abettor not present at the scene holds a lower legal footing than that of a principal accused, Dawn said.

The appeals described Khan's treatment as part of an "unprecedented campaign of political victimisation" since his removal from office in 2022. It contended that the cases were an attempt by the state and police to "implicate" Khan based solely on "vague and unsupported allegations of abetment," with no "convincing" evidence connecting him to the alleged offences.

Following Khan's "unlawful and invalid" arrest from the Islamabad High Court premises on May 9, 2023, multiple FIRs were registered in Lahore and Islamabad. The appeal noted that none of the complaints contained specific allegations or details regarding the purported conspiracy. It further alleged that supplementary statements introduced later by police officials aimed to "falsely implicate" Khan.

The appeal questioned the prosecution's claim that police knew about the conspiracy to orchestrate violence as early as May 7 but did not take action to prevent the attacks, calling it "highly illogical" and highlighting the "malafide and politically motivated nature of the proceedings," Dawn reported.

Khan was said to have been "maliciously implicated" in these cases as part of a "calculated and politically motivated design to prolong his incarceration," harass him, and tarnish his public image. The appeal asserted that Khan's arrest was "never genuinely required" in the May 9 violence cases, noting police did not attempt to arrest him for over five months despite bail applications being dismissed.

The appeal further argued that the LHC's denial of bail was based on "engineered and fabricated evidence" including stale and discredited statements recorded long after the incidents, without explanation for the delay. It also highlighted how the prosecution had repeatedly shifted its narrative after previous versions failed in court.

"These material contradictions and afterthoughts clearly made out a case falling within the ambit of Section 497(2) of the criminal procedure code, warranting the grant of bail," the appeal pleaded before the Supreme Court, according to Dawn.

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