Judge threat case: Imran’s non-bailable warrants converted into bailable ones

ISLAMABAD: A court in the federal capital on Friday converted a non-bailable arrest warrant issued against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan into a bailable one in a case related to issuing threats to a female judge while addressing a public gathering last year.

Additional Sessions Judge Faizan Haider Gilani pronounced the verdict hours after he had reserved it on PTI’s chief petition seeking an extension of the suspension of the arrest warrant. In his arguments, prosecutor Raja Rizwan Abbasi had pleaded the court to make the PTI chief bound to appear in court at a future date.

Imran Khan’s lawyer Gohar Ali requested the court to hear his client’s case on March 30, as the PTI chief would be appearing in a local court in the Toshakhana case on the same date. He said he would submit a plea in a civil court to change the date on the arrest warrant from March 29 to March 30.

Addressing the lawyer, judge Gilani replied: “It’s strange that you are requesting for March 30 while the date mentioned on the arrest warrant is March 29”. The prosecutor said that arguments should be given on the merits of the Khan’s petition for the suspension of the arrest warrant.

Lawyer Gohar Ali, however, again requested the court to extend the order regarding suspension of arrest warrants till March 30. The judge remarked that the court can issue any verdict on March 29.

At this, lawyer Ali said that the warrants related to the Toshakhana case are also suspended till March 30.

The judge then asked whether Imran Khan had ever appeared before the court in the case. The prosecutor said that the PTI chief had never attended the hearing of the case, adding that Lawyer Gohar Ali had also not submitted a power of attorney in the woman judge threatening case.

The court reserved its decision on the request of Imran Khan’s legal team. After a break, the court decided to convert Imran Khan’s non-bailable warrant into a bailable warrant. The judge also disposed of PTI’s plea regarding suspension of warrant.