ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC), which last week barred the government from arresting Imran Khan from the capital until May 17 in any new case registered against the chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) while he was in custody, on Wednesday extended the period until May 31.
During the proceedings, Gauhar Ali Khan, the counsel for Khan, appeared before the bench. Additional Attorney General Munawar Dugal, Islamabad Advocate General Jahangir Jadoon, and state counsel were also present.
The hearing, presided over by Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, saw the government’s counsel requesting additional time to gather information regarding the cases filed against the former prime minister.
Granting the request, the court adjourned the hearing until May 31, allowing ample time for the government’s counsel to provide the requested information.
His arrest, which the Supreme Court ruled “invalid and unlawful” last week, has fuelled instability in the nation at a time of economic crisis, with record inflation, anaemic growth and delayed IMF funding.
Many cities in Pakistan saw violent protests following his arrest by the anti-graft agency on Tuesday. Khan denies any wrongdoing.
Protestors stormed military establishments, set ablaze a state broadcaster building, smashed buses, ransacked a top army official’s house in Lahore and attacked other assets, leading to nearly 7,000 arrests and the army being deployed.
Following the Supreme Court judgement, Justice Aurangzeb directed the government to ensure Khan’s security, adding that the former prime minister should give a clear declaration that he condemns everything that occurred in “riots.”
Khan has welcomed the court’s order and said the judiciary was Pakistan’s only protection against the “law of the jungle”.
“I must say I expected this from our judiciary, because the only hope now left — the only thin line between a banana republic and a democracy is the judiciary,” he told journalists inside the court premises on Friday.
— With input from Reuters
