Remand of Imran’s sisters extended for two days

ISLAMABAD: Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain on Tuesday approved a further two-day physical remand of Aleema and Uzma, the sisters of Imran Khan.

The court has directed the police to present the accused again on October 10. ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra had granted a one-day physical remand of the two sisters a day ago after they were taken into police custody. Both sisters appeared before the court on Tuesday after the completion of their physical remand. Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain heard the case. Prosecutor Raja Naveed, representing the government, requested a 10-day physical remand for them, saying that both of them “incited workers to protest on a megaphone and asked them to pelt stones on police which injured policemen”. While the megaphone had been recovered from the suspects, Naveed asked Aleema and Uzma to hand over the mobile phones through which videos were made.

The prosecutor said that people were “provoked through a well-thought-out plan and everything happened under a conspiracy”, requiring further investigation. Lawyers Faisal Fareed Chaudhry, Niazullah Niazi and Ali Bukhari represented the accused.

At the beginning of the hearing, Chaudhry requested the court for a medical check-up. “Medical reports have not been submitted to the court yet,” Chaudhry said, reading out the first information report (FIR). The family is being targeted for revenge as the PTI founder, his wife and nephew are in jail, he said. According to the prosecutor, Aleema and Uzma were named in another case registered at the Aabpara police station.

Meanwhile, lawyer Niazullah said that at the time of arrest, Aleema and Uzma had nothing in their possession, adding that they were “illegally” detained. They have been accused of chanting slogans. Has chanting slogans become a crime in Pakistan, Niazi questioned.

“Eleven judges of the Supreme Court called the PTI a political party but the government wants to abolish the fundamental rights of citizens by amending the Constitution,” he said. Bukhari said that Aleema and Uzma were only arrested because they were sisters of the PTI founder.

The ATC Judge asked if Aleema and Uzma should be investigated further to which Naveed said that the case against them was “of a serious nature”. Rejecting the 10-day physical remand request, the court granted the police the suspects’ custody for another two days.