Former MNA Ali Wazir re-arrested in sedition case, sent to Dadu prison

KARACHI: Former Member of the National Assembly Ali Wazir, associated with the outlawed Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM), has been arrested again in a separate sedition case registered in Dadu, just hours after being released from Sukkur prison on bail.

Wazir's counsel, Advocate Qadir Khan, told Dawn on Thursday that the former lawmaker was released from Sukkur prison after securing bail. However, police re-arrested him shortly afterwards in connection with another sedition case. A local court subsequently sent him to Dadu prison on judicial remand.

Earlier bail by Sindh High Court

Wazir had recently been released from Sukkur prison after a constitutional bench of the Sindh High Court granted him bail in a case registered against him in Nawabshah. That case was filed under Sections 123-A (condemnation of the creation of the State, and advocacy of abolition of its sovereignty) and 124-A (sedition) of the Pakistan Penal Code, read with Sections 6/7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.

Prosecution seeks cancellation of bail

Meanwhile, the prosecution has filed applications under Section 497(5) of the Criminal Procedure Code before anti-terrorism courts (ATCs) in Karachi, seeking the cancellation of bail previously granted to Wazir.

The re-arrest of the former MNA follows a pattern of legal proceedings against him under sedition and anti-terrorism charges. Wazir, who has been a prominent political figure from the tribal areas, now faces judicial proceedings in Dadu in addition to the ongoing legal challenges in other jurisdictions.

The latest arrest comes despite the Sindh High Court's constitutional bench having earlier found grounds to release him on bail in the Nawabshah case. The prosecution's simultaneous move to seek bail cancellation in Karachi's anti-terrorism courts indicates that authorities are pursuing multiple legal avenues against the former parliamentarian.

Wazir remains in Dadu prison on judicial remand as proceedings in the fresh sedition case continue.