LHC dismisses 'inadmissible' plea against Fawad's 'illegal' detention

LAHORE:

A request to have Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry released from custody was turned down by the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday. The court ruled that the case was "no longer admissible."

Justice Tariq Saleem of the LHC was hearing a plea for Fawad's release from Punjab's Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD)'s "illegal and unlawful confinement."

The LHC summoned the inspectors general of Punjab and Islamabad to determine which agency had taken Fawad into custody after the police failed to produce the PTI leader in court.

On charges of sedition and "inciting violence against a constitutional institution," Fawad Chaudhry was taken into custody in the early hours of the morning.

However, the inspector general of Punjab police informed the court later that evening that Islamabad police had taken Fawad into custody and granted the PTI leader temporary remand.

Hours after the provincial capital's Kohsar police arrested Fawad, a magisterial court in Cantt Lahore granted him temporary remand to the Islamabad police.

During the press talk, while strongly criticising the appointment of Mohsin Naqvi as Punjab’s caretaker chief minister the PTI leader had also said that “those who are being appointed as the caretaker of [Punjab] government will be followed until they are punished”.

The LHC ruled that the plea was no longer admissible due to the fact that the PTI leader's detention was not unlawful in light of the information.

Even if Fawad Chaudhry has "reached Islamabad or is on the motorway," the court ordered the Islamabad police to bring him before it during the first round of today's proceedings.

However, due to persistent ambiguity regarding whether the federal government or the provincial government had been made a party to the case, the capital police refused to do so.

Infuriated by the response, Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh ordered the police to bring the PTI leader to the LHC despite the fact that he had "reached Islamabad or is on the motorway."

Advocate Azhar Siddique and barrister Muhammad Ahmad Pansota, who represented the petitioner, told the court that Fawad was being taken to the highway rather than appearing before the court, and that doing so would constitute contempt of court.

Law officer Jawad Yaqoob began his arguments shortly after the court resumed its proceedings, and Justice Sheikh remarked that he would listen to his arguments once the order had been followed. Finally, Justice Sheikh summoned the IGPs of Islamabad and Punjab by 6 p.m. today at the LHC and also instructed them to bring Fawad before the court.

Hours after the capital's Kohsar police arrested Fawad from the provincial capital, the Cantt Lahore magisterial court approved Fawad's temporary remand to the Islamabad police.

On the basis of Umar Hameed's complaint that Fawad had "incited violence against a constitutional institution," a first information report (FIR) was filed against him at the Kohsar police station.

Sections 153-A (promotion of hostility between groups), 506 (criminal intimidation), 505 (statement conducive to public mischief), and 124-A (sedition) of the Pakistan Penal Code were used to file the FIR.

Fawad's transit remand was taken from Lahore, according to reports, and he will be moved to Islamabad today.

The concerned parties were instructed by judicial magistrate Mudasar Hayat to bring the former minister before the appropriate court today in the federal capital.

Additionally, the court mandated a Services Hospital Lahore medical examination for the PTI leader.

LHC petition Prior to the start of the hearing, the leader of the PTI asked the magistrate court in Lahore to give him a copy of the FIR that was filed against him.

Fawad told the court that he was a former federal minister and Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) lawyer after receiving the copy. He also said that the "conduct used during his arrest was not appropriate."

Read: ECP notifies 43 PTI lawmakers The leader of the PTI asked the court to order the police to treat him with respect and to order a medical exam for him.

Fawad's attorneys voiced their displeasure with the handcuffing of the former minister during his argument. They claimed that a resolution stating that lawyers will not be bound had been passed.

They also informed the court that a petition for Fawad's habeas corpus was filed with the Lahore High Court (LHC). As a result, the transit remand decision was halted until the LHC's decision on the petition was made public.

"James Bond in court": After his arrest, Fawad told the media that "he is proud" of being named in the FIR that led to his arrest. He maintained that those who had him arrested would "soon be ashamed" of themselves.

He said, "it seems James Bond is being produced before the court," mocking the court's extensive security presence.

Brother arrested for protesting the former minister's arrest, according to reports, Faraz Chaudhry, the brother of the PTI leader, was taken into custody from Jhelum, Rawalpindi.

Faraz has been relocated to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) building by Jhelum police, according to reports.

The former minister's arrest comes just hours after he warned the ECP members, their families, and others of vengeance at a press conference in Lahore if "those involved in the May 25 incident – police crackdown to stop PTI expedition to Islamabad – were appointed or remain appointed."

Read More "We have formally lodged a complaint before the Election Commission that those directly involved in the May 25 crackdown against the PTI protest should not be appointed in Punjab," he had stated. Read More "PPP and PML-N will jointly contest elections in Sindh."

The FIR's text says that Fawad said in a speech on Tuesday that the ECP has the same status as a "secretary" and that the "chief election commissioner signs documents like a clerk."

While strongly criticizing Mohsin Naqvi's appointment as Punjab's interim chief minister, the PTI leader also stated that "those who are being appointed as the caretaker of [Punjab] government will be followed until they are punished" during the press conference.

Imran Khan, chairman of the PTI and former premier, had previously decided to oppose the ECP's decision to appoint Naqvi as caretaker chief minister of Punjab and announced that nationwide protests would be held calling the new appointee "an enemy of PTI."

PTI leaders condemn arrest On Twitter, condemnations began to pour in shortly after the arrest.

The arrest, according to PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, was "a strong slap on the democracy and the rule of law of this country."

Qureshi added in the tweet, "Please stop playing with Pakistan, otherwise the situation will not be under anyone's control."