Court rejects plea for Asad Qaiser’s physical remand

MARDAN: A magistrate court here on Sunday rejected the police request for physical remand of former speaker of National Assembly and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Asad Qaiser.

Rejecting the plea, Judicial Magistrate Ataur Rehman ordered to send Asad Qaiser to jail on judicial remand.

It may be noted that Asad Qaiser was re-arrested after securing bail from the district and sessions court in Mardan on Saturday. The Charsadda police arrested him on November 24 in connection with the May 9 case. The sessions court in Mardan today granted him bail in the May 9 case.

Mardan District and Sessions Court Judge granted bail to Asad Qaiser against surety bonds worth Rs100, 000. However, following his release from prison, the Mardan police re-arrested former speaker Qaiser, citing his suspected involvement in the attack May 9 incidents. It may be noted that Asad Qaiser, who is accused of corruption in the procurement of equipment for Gajju Khan Medical College, was arrested from Banigala in Islamabad, on November 3. The Anti-Corruption Establishment had booked Asad Qaiser over his alleged corruption in the purchase of medical equipment for Swabi’s Gajju Khan Medical College. Charsadda police arrested him in the May 9 case. DSJ granted him bail in the case. However, Mardan police arrested him in a case registered against him in City Police Station. The police shifted him to the City Police Station from Central Prison Mardan. The police produced the former speaker before the magistrate and requested for physical remand but the magistrate rejected the plea and sent him speaker to jail on judicial remand. Meanwhile, Jabbar Police Station officials registered the first information report (FIR) against more than 105 PTI workers including former lawmakers, lawyers and workers for arranging workers’ conventions at the residence of former Member Provincial Assembly Iftikhar Ali Mashwani. The police registered the case against senior vice-president Sher Afzal Marwat, former lawmakers Iftikhar Ali Mashwani, Amir Farzand Khan, Abdus Salam Afridi, Tufail Anjum, Zahir Shah Toru, Haris Khan Toru, Riaz Pandakhel advocate, Saddat Tawani, Ihtisham advocate, Ismail Afghani, Shabbir Khan and others under sections 341,188,189,147 and 149 of the Pakistan Penal Code.