An anti-terrorism court on Saturday granted bail to jailed former Pakistan premier Imran Khan in 12 cases linked to the May 9 attacks on military installations by his supporters following his arrest in an alleged corruption case.
ATC judge Malik Ejaz Asif granted bail to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party founder Khan after fulfilling a surety bond of Rs 0.1 million in all 12 cases, including the General Headquarters (Pakistan Army) and Army Museum attack.
The court said there was no justification to keep Khan, 71, under arrest as all accused in May 9 cases were on bail.
Khan will remain in jail as he is convicted in many other cases.
The court’s order came a day after independents backed by Khan’s party won nearly 100 seats in the National Assembly.
Former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi was also granted bail in 13 cases in the same case.
Qureshi, who is also in prison facing charges in other cases, will not be released either.
Khan and PTI stalwart Qureshi were indicted in the cases on February 6.
The two were produced before the court, where the former prime minister informed the judge that he was illegally arrested on May 9 from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) premises. Khan was booked in multiple cases related to the May 9 violence that erupted following his arrest in an alleged corruption case.
The cases registered in Rawalpindi included the attack on the gate of General Headquarters (GHQ), rioting in the office of a sensitive institution and others. Khan had denied the allegations mentioned in the cases’ first information reports.
Earlier, after his release from Adiala jail, Qureshi was whisked away by Punjab police from prison in connection with a case about the attack on the GHQ. The anti-terrorism court also approved the bail application of former federal minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed in a case related to the May 9 attacks.
Once an ally of Khan, Rasheed, who later distanced himself from the party, was, however, released from the jail. Dozens of cases have been registered against Khan since his government was toppled through a no-trust vote in April 2022.
