LAHORE: The Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Lahore on Friday declared six individuals, including fashion designer Khadija Shah, as proclaimed offenders (PO) in the Jinnah House (Corps Commander Lahore) attack case, over their repeated non-appearance in proceedings.
The court also issued permanent arrest warrants against Khadija Shah and the other accused, including Faisal Akhtar, Adil Saeed, Faqir Syed Arsalan, Qasim Minhas, and Abdullah Hassan.
The order was announced by Manzer Ali Gill, Administrative Judge of the Anti-Terrorism Court. The court noted that the accused had repeatedly failed to appear for trial proceedings despite being given sufficient opportunities.
Meanwhile, the court also initiated proceedings to declare co-accused Muhammad Maqbool a proclaimed offender and issued non-bailable arrest warrants against him in the same case.
According to the prosecution, the accused were deliberately avoiding court appearances due to fear of arrest. The prosecution further informed the court that Khadija Shah had gone into hiding after being convicted in a separate May 9 case.
ATC extends Fawad Chaudhry’s interim bail in May 9 riot cases
In related development, the ATC Lahore on Friday extended the interim bail of former federal minister Fawad Chaudhry in five cases related to the May 9 arson and vandalism incidents.
ATC Judge Manzer Ali Gill heard the interim bail applications and ordered an extension in the bails until February 13. The court also directed the prosecution to submit the complete record of the cases at the next hearing.
Fawad Chaudhry appeared before the court along with his counsel during the proceedings.
The cases against the former minister include allegations of vehicle burning at Jinnah House Chowk and arson and vandalism at Sherpao Bridge.
