Islamabad HC suspends Imran Khan’s arrest till March 13

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad high court suspended on Tuesday the non-bailable arrest warrants issued against former PM and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan by a local court in a graft case related to the purchase and sale of gifts from the Toshakhana (state depository) till March 13.
Islamabad high court chief justice Aamer Farooq accepted Khan’s plea against the additional sessions judge’s decision and directed the PTI chairman to ensure that he appears on March 13 before the trial court that had issued the arrest warrants.

Earlier, Imran also skipped on Tuesday the hearing in the Islamabad sessions court in the Toshakhana case despite the NBWs against him. Following the high court’s decision, the sessions court ordered the former PM to appear before it, where he will be indicted. Imran has thrice skipped indictment hearings in the case.
On February 28, the trial court had issued NBWs for Imran after he decided not to turn up before it while attending hearings of three other cases— prohibited funding, terrorism, and attempted murder— at other courts located in the same vicinity.

Last Sunday, Islamabad police went to his residence in Lahore in a bid to arrest him but the PTI chairman dodged them and later addressed his supporters, taking on the incumbent government for its incompetence and mismanagement while lashing out at ex-army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa for his ouster from office last year.
His speech had prompted Pakistan’s media regulator, probably at the behest of the authorities, to ban television channels from broadcasting his speeches and news conferences. It accused Imran of attacking the state’s institutions and promoting hatred.

The graft reference against Khan alleged that he had not shared details of the gifts he retained from the Toshakhana and proceeds from their reported sales. A reference was filed against him by lawmakers from the ruling coalition in this regard and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had concluded in October last year that the former PM had made “false statements and incorrect declarations” regarding the gifts he had purchased from the Toshakhana. The electoral watchdog subsequently, disqualified him for being dishonest and corrupt and approached the district and sessions court seeking proceedings against Imran under criminal law for allegedly misleading officials about the gifts he had received from foreign dignitaries during his tenure as PM.