Govt hails, PTI condemns conviction of Bhachar, others in May 9 riots case

• Sargodha ATC sentences Malik Ahmed Bhachar, MNA Ahmad Chattha, ex-MNA Ch Bilal Ejaz, along with dozens of others—to 10 years in prison
• Minister of State for Law hopes other May 9-related cases would be decided soon as well
• Sargodha verdict marks yet another darkest day in Pakistan’s judicial history: PTI Spokesperson

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) strongly condemned while the federal government hailed as a “positive step” the Sargodha Anti-Terrorism Court’s (ATC) verdict, sentencing a dozen of PTI leaders, including Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Malik Ahmed Khan Bhachar, to 10 years in prison in the May 9 riots case.

The Sargodha ATC while delivering a verdict on a case pertaining to the May 9 riots, sentenced more than a dozen senior PTI leaders and workers, including Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Malik Ahmed Khan Bhachar, MNA Ahmad Chattha, former MNA and Central Punjab General Secretary Chaudhry Bilal Ejaz, along with dozens of others, to 10 years in prison.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad after the ATC verdict, Minister of State for Law and Justice Barrister Aqeel Malik said: “Today, the Sargodha ATC issued an order and we welcome it … I think it is a very positive step, as justice has been upheld.”

He said the verdict “fulfills all requirements of justice” and followed due process since the entire trial proceedings were carried out in accordance with law. “The decision announced is in accordance with the law and the Constitution,” Malik asserted.

Malik said that PTI’s Bhachar, MNA Ahmed Chattha and former MNA Bilal Ejaz were sentenced to 10 years in prison each in a case related to the riots, emphasizing that “when you take the law into your own hand, whether you’re an MNA or MPA or opposition leader.”

The state minister hoped that other May 9-related cases would be decided soon as well.

Assailing the PTI, he alleged that the riots were “carefully curated” via “planning” to precisely attack over 200 locations.

On May 9, 2023, country-wide protests erupted, which later turned violent after PTI founder Imran Khan was arrested from the Islamabad High Court premises by paramilitary Rangers. During the protest, military installations and state-owned buildings were vandalized and ransacked, including Lahore Corps Commander House, known as Jinnah House, and a base in Mianwali, among others.

Former premier Imran Khan—who was released later on the intervention by the Supreme Court but has been imprisoned in various cases since August 2023. Following the riots, thousands of protesters, including the party’s top leadership, were arrested during a vigorous nationwide crackdown.

Another stain on the face of justice: PTI

Meanwhile, the PTI spokesperson denounced the verdict as “another stain on the face of justice,” calling it one of the darkest days in Pakistan’s judicial history, according to a statement issued by the PTI Central Media Department on Tuesday.

He declared that this ruling was not only a blatant and grave violation of all principles of justice but also a clear attempt to crush a democratically elected political party through the use of brute state power.

PTI Spokesperson stated that the manner in which political leaders and workers have been branded as terrorists and handed decades-long sentences clearly reflected the unfortunate reality that Pakistan’s courts are now functioning as instruments of the establishment rather than as impartial institutions of justice. PTI asserted that all these individuals are peaceful, law-abiding citizens, and that sentencing them under false, fabricated and concocted terrorism charges is nothing short of a mockery of both the Constitution and the very concept of justice.

He questioned what kind of justice allows a single individual to be named in dozens of cases across multiple cities—all on the same day. Is it even logical, he asked, to believe that one person could be present at eight different locations simultaneously? The PTI spokesperson stated that these sentences were based on a web of fabricated FIRs, calling the entire exercise a grave miscarriage of justice.

“We strongly condemn the statement made by a sitting government minister who shamelessly claimed on television that the verdict was “based on merit,” he added. PTI spokesperson stated that the government and its sycophants should be ashamed of openly endorsing such blatant oppression, adding that it seems the crimes of the PML-N, PPP, and other allied parties are considered above scrutiny, while PTI’s democratic protests are unjustly labeled as acts of terrorism.

“This verdict demonstrates that courts have lost their capacity to deliver fair justice. Justice now serves only the powerful, while the judiciary is being used as a tool to suppress, discredit, and eliminate PTI and the public voice,” he lamented.

However, he vowed that PTI firmly rejected this judicial witch hunt and would fight these sham verdicts through every legal, political and public forum, as these decisions would neither break them nor erase them come what may.

Meanwhile, Bachar said in a post on X that he would not abandon his support of Imran.

PTI MNA Asad Qaiser condemned the sentences, alleging that “neither was any transparent or legal procedure followed in the case, nor was any credible witness presented. The demands of justice were grossly violated.”

He said in a post on X that the party would challenge the “biased decision” in the high court.

Terming the decision “outright injustice”, the party’s South Punjab wing said, “The truth is that the establishment’s role in this entire process is evident to all, and nothing called justice remains.

“These punishments are not only vengeful actions but also an insult to the country’s democracy, judiciary, and people, and now the people will no longer stay silent!” the statement read.

PTI MNA and lawyer Shafqat Awan also condemned the decision. “I have never seen a more horrific and brutal decision than the one given by the Sargodha ATC judge,” he told reporters.